"Every Man in This Village Is a Liar" is LA Times reporter Megan K. Stack's riveting account of what she saw in the combat zones of the Middle East, in war-torn Afghanistan and Pakistan, and beyond. She relates her initial wild excitement and her slow disillusionment as the cost of violence outweighs the elusive promise of freedom and democracy.

Every man in this village is a liar -- Chasing ghosts -- As long as you can pay for it -- Terrorism and other stories -- Forgive us our trespasses -- The living martyr -- The leader -- Sacrifice -- We expected something better -- A question of cost -- Loddi doddi, we likes to party -- A city built on garbage -- The earthquake nobody felt -- All things light, and all things dark -- There would be consequences -- Killing the dead -- I thought I was a salamander.