Lebanese-American author Anthony Shadid is in a unique position to give an insightful understanding into the Iraqi people: he’s fluent in Arabic and understands Arab culture and customs. In 2004, he won a Pulitzer Prize for covering the lives of ordinary Iraqi people outside the air-conditioned, well-protected Green Zone in Baghdad as they deal with bombed-out buildings, lack of electricity, and violence, and three decades of war. Shadid’s latest book, Night Draws Near : Iraq’s People in the Shadow of America’s War, gives an account of life in Iraq among its common citizens from a variety of stations in life, whether they’re highly educated Baghdad professionals or terrified policemen from the Sunni Triangle. Shadid starts from the days leading up to American Invasion and ends in an epilogue of the January 2005 elections. With clarity and precision, Shadid shares his rare access he had to these strong, resilient people: their fear, their exhaustion, and their frustration for a liberator that has not delivered on its promises.