The Outpost, 2010

The platoon's main base of operations is one of the most prevalent settings in the novel, and is repeatedly characterized as foul smelling, hot, and lacking in amenities. The outpost itself is a repurposed mansion built for one of Saddam Hussein's generals before being coopted by the military as a strategic hub for the area surrounding Ashuriyah. Most of Jack's confrontations with Chambers occur here as well, which reminds the reader of the military backdrop surrounding their interpersonal conflict. The time of the novel is also never explicitly mentioned, instead only being clarified by oblique references to worldwide events, such as Lebron James moving to the Miami Heat or the firing of General McChrystal. This exclusion of a reference to a specific date implies that the date is not of utmost importance in its own right, only as it relates to the broader progress of the war...