Addario Memoir

In Parts Three and Four in "It's What I Do," I think the most compelling Chapters are 11 and 14. Chapter 11, "You Will Die Tonight," is about Lynsey Addario and three other journalists being kidnapped in Libya by Qaddafi's soldiers. The account of their kidnapping, the psychological and physical torture they endured, and the toll it took on Lynsey after they were rescued. They were beaten, threatened, Lynsey was sexually assaulted (but not raped) by countless men, and at the end of it all, the psychological element took over and changed Lynsey's outlook on life.

This quote from Chapter 11 stood out to me: "I was weirdly ashamed that the seven days of physical torture- getting punched in the face and having my wrists and ankles bound- had left no visible marks on my body, save for little red marks where the zip ties had dug into my wrists. Without physical evidence, I felt that there was no proof of how much I had endured" (p. 240). This quote resonates with me because I can't imagine how alone and empty I would feel if I went from being certain I would die to being safe at home where no one understood what I had just gone through in a matter of hours.

Chapter 14, "Lukas," is about Lynsey's son, and how he changed her life even though she was able to hold onto her career. She realizes in this chapter, finally, that it is possible to have a personal and professional life- both which you care deeply about. She still makes sacrifices, but I thought it was touching that she was finally able to find this happy medium after so many years of believing she could only have one.

I learned that photojournalism is risky yet rewarding.