An Iraq War veteranâs firsthand account of surviving a deadly insurgent ambush against the 1st Cavalry Divisionâand battling through the aftermath. It was known as Black SundayâApril 4, 2004, when units of Americaâs 1st Cavalry Division saw their routine deployment turn into a harrowing and costly fight. Enraged, motivated, and well-armed insurgents crammed the alleys, streets, and buildings of Sadr City. In that fight, a surging mob of militants ambushed one small unit of the Black Knight battalion. The heroic rescue attempt proved fatal for many of the determined soldiers who braved the gauntlet. Cav veteran Matt Fiskâwho fought through Black Sunday and survivedâgives a gut-level, over-the-rifle-sights view of a short, violent period when one of the safest places in the war zone suddenly turned into a cauldron of death and destruction, leaving eight US troops dead and dozens woundedâonly the beginning of a lengthy siege aimed at defeating the Mahdi Army. Fiskâs rugged deployment with colorful and courageous fellow soldiers would result in some serious problems when he returned home, testing his coping skills. He turned to the VA for helpâand wound up with the same frustration that plagues so many of todayâs returning combat veterans. Itâs all here in Black Knights, Dark Daysâand itâs all brutally honest.
âA gripping, astonishing insiderâs account of the April 4, 2004, ambush of a First Cavalry Platoon in Sadr City that changed the course of the Iraq War. With great candor and skill, Matt Fisk interweaves the chaos and adrenaline of modern combat with the continuing battles with PTSD at home. An intense, vivid, deeply personal portrait of men at war that is up there with the very best books of the genre.â âMikko Alanne, screenwriter and producer, The Long Road Home, The 33