Marine Gaurav Taneja is a college student and a veteran, like thousands of other young U-S soldiers who are coming home after completing their first tours in Iraq.
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Related Pieces
Piece Description
Marine Gaurav Taneja is a college student and a veteran, like thousands of other young U-S soldiers who are coming home after completing their first tours in Iraq.
Broadcast History
First broadcast on NPR's All Things Considered 2/17/04
Timing and Cues
Suggested Host Intro:
Youth Radio has been gathering the voices of troops returning home from Iraq since the beginning of the war. Gaurav Taneja (Pron: GAH-Ruv Tuh-NAY-juh) fought with the Second Battalion, 23rd Marines Fox Company when they invaded Iraq. These are his reflections after returning home to college.
Back announce: This essay was produced by Youth Radio as part of their series Reflections on Return.
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Posted on August 29, 2006 at 09:07 AM | Permalink
Review of Reflections on Return: A Marine Returns to School
Even though the war in Iraq rages on every day, many of us do not
personally know other young people who have fought. Or even if we do know someone, that person may not want to talk about his or her
experiences in the war. That's why I recommend this compelling piece by Gaurav Taneja, a Marine who tells us exactly what it was like for him both in the war and at home, where he's now a student at the University of California at Riverside.
Gaurav tells haunting stories including his feelings about seeing his friends get hurt on the battlefield and recounting a challenging period when, due to supply shortages, the soldiers had to survive on only one meal a day. He's glad to be back alive, but the effects of the war stays with him: someone coming up behind him, or even just a loud noise, can make him jumpy and nervous.
Though the content of this piece is really fascinating, the narration
and voicing could be a bit smoother. Gaurav might consider using his voice more expressively, and organizing the structure of the piece a bit more and putting a few bridges between his stories.
But that aside, the raw content of this piece is powerful and will
definitely make you think about the war and what it's like for our
soldiers. Thanks to Youth Radio for giving Gaurav some time to tell us about his life!