Corporal Cannon: A Female Marine in Afghanistan

Cannon holds nothing back in this raw, gut-wrenching account of her stint in the Marine Corps. Twenty years old when she was deployed in 2010, Cannon worked as a “data dink” setting up the internet for troops moving through combat zones. Bored by the work, she volunteered for a transfer to Delaram Base and a spot on a team working with a Georgian battalion (one hoping to prove its country’s worthiness to NATO). This new venture was rife with sexism and harsh treatment; upon arrival, the major told her “You’re a girl... you’re not supposed to be here,” and admonished Cannon to “not bother the men.” (Meanwhile, the men aggressively hit on her.) At the same time, she was in an uneasy open marriage with a fellow Marine, and jealousy about his flings tempted her into a dalliance with a contractor, William, which yielded an unwanted pregnancy. Cannon concealed her condition, out of fear of dishonorable discharge. While William urged her to keep the baby and became increasingly controlling, her turmoil led her to almost commit suicide. Back with her husband in California, she got an abortion, a decision she regrets. Cannon began writing as “a form of self-therapy,” and she eventually finds a way to healing, through painful, detailed recountings, which are searing and sometimes overwhelming to take in. It’s a dramatic, sobering account of prejudice and the mistreatment of women in combat zones. (Oct.)

Correction: An earlier version of this review misstated how long the author was in the Marines, and also misstated the branch of service in which her husband served.