Martyrs' day - Michael Kelly

In 1991-92, Michael Kelly travelled through every country touched by the Gulf War. He was an eyewitness to the aerial bombardment of Baghdad, the Scud attacks on Israel, the foray across the desert into Kuwait and the war's aftermath in Kurdestan. His dispatches home were unrivalled in their originality, insightfulness and brilliantly rendered observation. Now he has written a compelling account of his year in the Gulf, focusing on people and places as well as the war itself.

'Gives us a better sense of what happened than any book so far . . . We are fortunate that a writer of his power has come along' Philip Caputo

'As a stylist, Kelly brought to the war a kind of icy lyricism. He wrote beautifully about terrible things . . . This is not a book that will fade easily' Jonathan Raban