What difference did it make for the U.S. government's preparation and response to Hurricane Katrina that the nation was at war? Are there trade-offs between projecting American military power around the world and protecting the country from natural disasters? In what ways were post-Katrina rescue, relief and security operations experienced as the war "coming home"? Paul Kramer's investigation takes a bold, troubling look at one of the worst urban disasters in U.S. history and what it says about the painful but often hidden costs of war.