The Untold War: Inside the Hearts, Minds, and Souls of Our Soldiers Book

This book looks at the psychological trauma of war from a philosophical or moral point of view, rather than a medical one. This was not what I thought it would be about, but it was a different approach to the issue and quite refreshing. On reflection, I suppose the reference to souls in the subtitle should have tipped me off. Sherman discusses the difference between civilian and military attitudes and how the transition between the two (both ways) can have negative emotional impact, as well as discussing the way that different philosophical doctrines can help protect or increase the damage. What this book does not do is talk specifically and in depth about PTSD, as I had thought it would.

Sherman assumes familiarity with philosophical schools of thought, so it can be a little confusing if you don't know the exact difference between, for example, Aristotelian and Stoic approaches. It is still a very interesting book, and because of the range of topics covered it ended up being research for two characters, not just the one I had originally had in mind.