Rescued POW to lauch book ( 2003-09-03 14:48) (Agencies)
Former prisoner of war Jessica Lynch has signed a $1 million
agreement with Alfred A. Knopf, giving the injured former US Army private the
chance to tell her own story.
The publisher said the book, "I am a Soldier, Too: The Jessica Lynch Story,"
will be written by former New York Times reporter Rick Bragg.
Sources familiar with the book said it will tell the tale of a small town
girl who goes to war in Iraq and becomes a national hero, recognition she does
not feel she deserves.
Sources at Knopf said the publisher will pay $1 million to Bragg and the
Lynch family. Bragg will be paid a flat fee for producing the book while the
Lynch family will receive part of the advance and all of the royalties.
Lynch, 20, was granted an honorable military discharge last week due to her
injuries. An army private, she became a symbol of American patriotism during the
war after she was captured by Iraqi forces on March 23 near the city of
Nassiriya. Eleven US soldiers were killed and nine wounded in the incident.
US commandos rescued Lynch from an Iraqi hospital on April 1 and she was
given a hero's welcome when she returned to her hometown of Palestine, West
Virginia, on July 22.
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