Lost Horizons

Living life on the edge--the memoir of a legendary AP war correspondent in the world's war zones.

This is the remarkable life story and moving reflections of Denis D. Gray, who was born Zdenek Mecir in communist Czechoslovakia and went on to a legendary career as a foreign correspondent for the Associate Press.

From the frontlines of the Vietnam War and the "Killing Fields" of Cambodia to foxholes in Iraq and Afghanistan, Gray chronicles eight decades of relentless change and turmoil--as well as abiding resilience and timeless beauty--in this highly personal memoir. Through it all, Gray is caught between an impulse to find a refuge--a haven of perpetual peace, even a clearly unreachable "lost horizon" in a chaotic, madly spinning world--and the lure of living life on the edge as a war correspondent.

"In Lost Horizons, I try to make sense of it all as best I can. I tell my story and those of others--not only people but cities, countries and conflicts--through imperfect eyes. I chose not to present these accounts as a strictly chronological narrative but by subject and theme. In so doing, I hope to have captured the unique period in history during which I lived, loved and lost." --Denis D. Gray

Denis D. Gray was born Zdenek Mecir as American and British warplanes bombed his native city of Pilsen during World War II. Following the communist takeover of what was then Czechoslovakia the family was forced to flee their homeland--to Germany where his father was recruited by the CIA and the family assumed new names for security reasons. After residing in South Africa and Paris, he entered Yale in 1962 then served as a U.S. Army officer in Japan and Vietnam. After returning to the United States, he was hired by the Associated Press in 1972. A year later the news agency assigned him to cover the wars in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia where he worked with Cambodian reporters and photographers he describes as "the bravest and most loyal men I have ever met." Most did not survive the murderous Khmer Rouge regime. Based in Bangkok for many years, he covered wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia and a dozen other conflicts as well as natural and environmental disasters, sports and even some Hollywood stars over a 40-year career as a journalist. His articles have appeared in international magazines as well as newspapers around the world. He currently resides in northern Thailand.