Thirteen original essays analyze the progress that has been made since the official end of the Iraq War. Essayists examine the questions that have come to light with the ceasefire and U.S. occupation of Iraq. They begin by questioning the definition of "victory" in postwar Iraq and ask what it cost Americans at home in terms of dollars and lives. Next, authors address the perceived "failures" in Iraq by drawing the reader's attention to the two countries' different perspectives on the role of religion and the ideology of culture.