Zachary Durrett - Wag the Dog

I chose Wag the Dog by Larry Beinhart for my summer reading. Once I ruled out the books that the library did not have the movie for, this was the one I was interested in. Anyone can write a story about war, but when you write about creating a war, that's where the trouble comes in. How can you write a story about creating war? Most people like to think that war just happens. One day, a country does something offensive and another country responds defensively, by announcing war. Although, what really happens when you announce war? Troops don't automatically get sent. Time must be used to gather troops and send them. This book shows the planning period of war, even though it wasn't a real war. It mentions the importance of propaganda, time and time again, and how little people actually know about war and what goes on during it. Wag the Dog also shows the darker side of what some people are willing to do to keep a secret, win an election, and make money. Although we don't see this publicly in our country, it is still an insight into the minds of others.