They were the soldiers who pulled down the statue of Saddam Hussein ; the 3rd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, led by Lt. Col. Bryan P. McCoy (radio call sign: Darkside). And this is the story of their war, seen from the inside by the reporter they called Paperboy. From the build-up in Kuwait to the first push into Basra, from the briefings to the heat of battles planned or stumbled upon, San Francisco Chronicle reporter John Koopman captures the war in Iraq as it was lived, fought, and felt the nitty-gritty as well as the guts-and-glory of it ; and as he saw it firsthand from Darkside's humvee or riding with the sergeant major (the Marine infantry battalion's "most feared, respected, loved, and hated man"). A former service Marine himself, Koopman was seeing combat for the first time, too. His account, part memoir, part biography, part battle history, encompasses all the bravery and fear, camaraderie, excitement, humor, and sorrow experienced on the shifting front line of America's war in Iraq. In spring of 2004, author Koopman returned to Iraq and reunited with McCoy's Marines following their return to Iraq and the new insurgent war. This "rest of the story" makes for a fascinating epilogue.