There has been a wide range of books published on Australian and US foreign policy since September 11, but few link these issues as coherently as Robert Garran’s True Believer. This essentially journalistic account of the road to war in Iraq is approachable and includes valuable insights that will make it a catalyst for further debate on Australia’s foreign policy. In eleven concise chapters, Garran documents the close affinity between George W. Bush and John Howard, the case for and against war in Iraq, and the method by which Howard’s ‘new nationalism’ has become entwined with the Bush Doctrine. In joining the chorus of criticism against Howard’s foreign policy, Garran will raise the ire of true believers of Howard’s ilk. For those of the opposite persuasion, and those who inhabit the vast middle ground of politics, Garran eloquently details the weaknesses in the US case for war in Iraq and in Howard’s support of Bush. The practical and ethical dilemmas raised by pre-emption are exposed, as is the uncritical support for the ANZUS alliance.