As an Iraqi-American, I published a book titled "Once Upon a Time in Iraq". My main motivation came from friends and acquaintances who seemed interested in what I had to say about the Iraqis after our involvement in Iraq. They thought that what I had to say needed telling. Another motivation was the lack of books about Iraq and Iraqis as told by someone who grew up among them. Most of the recent books about Iraq are about the war in Iraq and written by Americans. After almost seventeen years of being involved in Iraq, I find that the average American is still unaware of what an Iraqi is like.