McKelvey, Tara 1963-

PERSONAL:

Born 1963.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Washington, DC. E-mail—contact@taramckelvey.com; taramckelvey@earthlink.net.

CAREER:

Journalist, writer, and editor. Prospect, senior editor; New York University School of Law's Center on Law and Security, New York, NY, fellow.

WRITINGS:

(Editor) One of the Guys: Women as Aggressors and Torturers, Seal Press/Publishers Group West (Emeryville, CA), 2007.

Monstering: Inside America's Policy of Secret Interrogations and Torture in the Terror War, Carroll & Graf Publishers (New York, NY), 2007.

Reviewer for the New York Times Book Review and a contributing writer for Marie Claire.

SIDELIGHTS:

In her first book, Monstering: Inside America's Policy of Secret Interrogations and Torture in the Terror War, journalist Tara McKelvey tells the inside story of the notorious scandal at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. The author not only focuses on the untold story of Abu Ghraib, but also reveals a pattern of severe abuse of prisoners in Iraq by the American military. "The media only focused on the photographs," the author told Ken Silverstein in an interview for Harper's magazine. "They missed the fact that the abuse was systematic and that the worst things were not even shown in the pictures. That's what my book is about: what happened beyond the frame of the Abu Ghraib photos."

Referring to the story told in Monstering as "harrowing," a contributor to the Daily Kos Web site went on to write that "what emerges is a nightmare landscape." In her book, McKelvey outlines various aspects of prisoner abuse in Iraq, from legal maneuverings in the Federal government about what constitutes torture to the largely young and inexperienced soldier prison guards who performed much of the hands-on torture with the help of U.S. intelligence agents. A contributor to Marie Claire wrote that not long after they begin reading the book, readers "will begin to feel the hairs on … [their] arms stand on end." In addition to torture, the author documents abuses such as rape, and reveals a culture of sadomasochism among some of the guards. A Kirkus Reviews contributor wrote that Monstering is "an eye-opening, depressing look at events that, more than any other single episode, turned the war in Iraq against the U.S."

McKelvey is also editor of One of the Guys: Women as Aggressors and Torturers, a collection of essays by journalists, attorneys, activists, and a physician about American women's role in torture in the fight against terrorism. The series of essays primarily view women participating in torture as pawns of men and the male-oriented military establishment. However, some essayist note that women have just as much potential as men to commit torture and examine the complex psychology and social issues that influence women who live in male-dominated societies. Cameron Scott, writing in Mother Jones, called the essays "compelling." Mark Bartkiewicz commented on the College of New Jersey Newsletter Web site: "Theoretical issues of power, class, nativist politics and race are common themes throughout many of the essays."

McKelvey told CA: "I first became interested in writing when I worked for the Kansas City Star when I was fifteen. I loved the newsroom!

"Some writers who have had a big influence on me are: Elaine Scarry, Ron Rosenbaum, and Bill Finnegan.

"I travel a lot, so I write wherever and whenever I can—on the Metro or in airports, in hotels and cafés (I like writing in cafés).

"The most surprising thing I have learned as a writer is that people see you differently—like you are somehow magical. It is very nice.

"I hope people will read my books and articles and have a better understanding of the impact that governmental policies (about interrogations, for example) have on individuals—that these are not only dry discussions about laws and policy, but that they also change people's lives, for better or worse."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Harper's, May 9, 2007, Ken Silverstein, "Six Questions for Tara McKelvey on Detainee Abuse."

Kirkus Reviews, April 15, 2007, review of Monstering: Inside America's Policy of Secret Interrogations and Torture in the Terror War.

Mother Jones, March 1, 2007, Cameron Scott, review of One of the Guys: Women as Aggressors and Torturers, p. 84.

New York Times Book Review, July 29, 2007, Jonathan Mahler, "Any Means Necessary," review of Monstering, p. 11.

ONLINE

College of New Jersey Newsletter Web site,http://wgst.intrasun.tcnj.edu/newsletter/ (January 12, 2008), Mark Bartkiewicz, review of Monstering.

Daily Kos,http://www.dailykos.com/ (July 15, 2007), review of Monstering

Marie Claire,http://www.marieclaire.com/ (January 12, 2008), review of Monstering.

Nation,http://www.thenation.com/ (January 12, 2008), very brief profile of author.

Tara McKelvey Home Page,http://www.taramckelvey.com (January 12, 2008).