Book Review: It Happened on the Way to War: A Marine's Path to Peace

[Valin]

Small Wars Journal:

Michael Few
4/26/11

Rye Barcott’s memoir, It Happened on the Way to War: A Marine's Path to Peace, is a study in opposites. There is the man he was, a combat veteran torn by the legacy of war, and the man he is striving to be, the humanitarian on a quest to end poverty at the local level in one distant slum. Following allegations that key moments in Greg Mortenson’s Three Cups of Tea were fabricated, I delved cautiously into Barcott's book, fearing that I was buying a fourth cup of snake oil. But after reading the book, hearing Barcott speak, and talking to others associated with his charity, Carolina for Kibera (CFK), I doubt that this nonprofit was erected to brand Rye Barcott. The book can be enjoyed on its own terms as an emotionally, inspiring coming of age story. The core idea is that of the longstanding theory of participatory development, an alternative, indirect approach to empowering the poor. Rye Barcott merely serves as the vessel showing the evolution of CFK from theory into practice through his travels in North Carolina, Kenya, Bosnia, Djibouti, Iraq, and Massachusetts. CFK seeks to develop local leaders, catalyze positive change and alleviate poverty in the Kibera slum of Nairobi. The lingering question remains: will CFK succeed?

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