Storytelling and war have complemented each other since before the written word was developed. It began with epic oral histories following heroes like Gilgamesh and Odysseus, eventually flowing into analyses of human nature when confronted with conflict found in works like For Whom the Bell Tolls, This Kind of War, and What it is Like to Go to War. While most of these works are seen as “classic” works from a long ago era, and usually only encountered in high school English classes, there is currently a resurgence of this type of storytelling as the millions affected by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan wrestle with their experiences.

I recently came across such writing of wartime experiences — and the analysis of war’s effects on the human experience — in CONSEQUENCE Magazine. To be more accurate, I came across the organization and some of its staff on Twitter and the resulting conversation led to the opportunity to review their work.

The first thing that struck me was the quality of the material…both physically and in content. The edition I read through was substantial, with almost 300 pages of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and visual art. As an amateur editor over at The Strategy Bridge, I can appreciate just how complicated it can be to discover, recruit, and edit such a massive amount of personal material.

As I read through the magazine it was obvious the stories were just that…personal. However, they were also “universal” — at least to those that have shared the hardship, joys, fears, and excitement inherent in war. I, for one, was immediately pulled back into my own wartime experiences while reading some of the stories. For example, in “War Stories” by Phil Klay one of the protagonists is discussing an IED attack that left him severely injured:

I’ve worked hard to remember it…The problem is I’m not sure what’s real memory and what’s my brain filling in details, like a guy whose heart stops and he thinks he sees a bright light. Except I’m sure of my bright light. There was a flash, definitely. There was a sulfur smell, like the Fourth of July, but real close…And black hitting so hard.

I dont trust my memories. I trust the vehicle, burnt and twisted and torn…No stories. Things. Bodies. People lie. Memories lie.

I smell something and the day remembers itself for me.

Reading that paragraph, I smelled the smells, felt my heart leap into my throat, sweat beading on my head and palms. While I was not severely injured, I too saw my bright light and felt darkness hit like a knockout punch…choked on sulfur smoke while I yelled at my driver to keep driving to get out of the “kill sack”. I too struggle to remember what really happened that night and what my brain has filled in…whether through purposeful memory gaps or the many tellings (and embellishments, likely) to family and friends. Memories lie…but smells from the events and the pictures of a destroyed vehicle are forever, it seems.

Later in the magazine, Hilary Plum dives into the investigation following the execution of Saddam Hussein with “Evidence.” Her use of quick, succinct statements admirably portrays the give and take between an investigator and a witness, as seen through only the former’s side of the dialogue. The story also amazingly addresses the American attitude toward the direction Iraq took after our intervention…after we gave control back to the host nation:

That was not our responsibility…I can attest we were all doing our due diligence…None of us saw anything with our own eyes.

Finally, I was struck by many of the images and poems enclosed in the magazine. My words cannot do them justice, so here are a few representations…

I congratulate the writers of CONSEQUENCE on their wonderful work and the staff for their efforts at putting together such a powerful product. There’s no doubt I’ll be headed back for a full subscription…