MARCH FORTH, by Trevor and Debbie Greene. Harper and Collins, 2012, 272 pp., $29.00 (hardcover)

On March 4, 2006, a Canadian patrol led by Capt. Kevin Schamuhn was on security operations in the Gumbad Valley, in the Shah Wali Koi District, an area known to be a hotbed of Taliban activity. The patrol was a joint operation of Canadian and Afghan National Army men and vehicles.

Trevor Greene, then 41, was attached to the One Platoon Group as a civil-military cooperation officer. CIMIC officers were to gather intelligence on the feelings, opinions and needs of the local Afghan people, especially in the areas of education, health and infrastructure.

The patrol entered the small village of Shinkay, and gathered with the village elders in the shade of trees by a river. The Canadians and village elders sat cross-legged in a circle and were first served tea.