In Afghanistan: Two Hundred Years of British, Russian and American Occupation

( 2 )

All Available Formats + Editions

——

$14.99

NOOK Book

——

$14.99

In Afghanistan (eBook) Pub. Date: 6/23/2009 Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
$6.03

$22.91

Hardcover

$6.03

$22.91

In Afghanistan: Two Hundred Years of British, Russian and American Occupation Pub. Date: 6/23/2009 Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Customers Who Bought This Also Bought

Advertising

Overview

Afghanistan has been a strategic prize for foreign empires for more than 200 years. The British, Russians, and Americans have all fought across its beautiful and inhospitable terrain, in conflicts variously ruthless, misguided and bloody. This violent history is the subject of David Loyn's magisterial book. It is a history littered with misunderstandings and broken promises, in which the British, the Russians, and later the Americans, constantly underestimated the ability of the Afghans. In Afghanistan brilliantly brings to life the personalities involved in Afghanistan's relationship with the world, chronicling the misunderstandings and missed opportunities that have so often led to war.

With 30 years experience as a foreign correspondent, David Loyn has had a front-row seat during Afghanistan’s recent history. In Afghanistan draws on David Loyn's unrivalled knowledge of the Taliban and the forces that prevail in Afghanistan, to provide the definitive analysis of the lessons these conflicts have for the present day.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

Loyn's dense chronicle of foreign meddling in Afghanistan reveals the country's long history "of confounding the optimism of invaders." The stories that Loyn (Frontline), a longtime BBC correspondent with considerable experience in Afghanistan, recounts bear this out with chilling inevitability-generations of British, Soviet and most recently American leaders are confounded by shifting regional allegiances and unanticipated violent religious movements. Loyn's book is packed with details and anecdotes about the personalities that shaped the country, such as the Scottish adventurer Mountstuart Elphinstone, who first explored the region in 1808 armed only with Alexander the Great's account as guide; Abdur Habibullah, the obese turn of the century Afghan emir who rode around on a tricycle; and Charlie Wilson, whose funding of the mujahideen during the Soviet invasion is given an appropriately darker shading than in the recent book and film. Loyn's book suffers at times from a surfeit of dates and names without clear organization, and his eagerness to equate past conflicts and leaders to current ones results in frenetic time jumping. Nevertheless, the weight of the material that Loyn has gathered makes his book extremely valuable given our current circumstances. (July)

Library Journal

Afghanistan, long the object of strategic interest, with invaders from Alexander the Great to the Soviet Union failing miserably, has suffered through capitalism, communism, and Islamicism in recent years, none fully taking hold. BBC correspondent Loyn has had close contacts with Taliban leaders. His views on various foreigners' ignorance, overconfidence, and missed opportunities make for a valuable gloss in view of President Obama's change of approach in Afghanistan.

—Edwin B. Burgess

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780230614031
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
Publication date: 6/23/2009
Pages: 288
Sales rank: 712,863
Product dimensions: 6.40 (w) x 9.30 (h) x 1.00 (d)

Meet the Author

David Loyn has been an award-winning foreign correspondent for 30 years for the BBC. He has reported from such places as Moscow, Kosovo, Delhi, Kashmir, Sri Lanka, Iraq and Kabul. His book Frontline: The True Story of the British Mavericks who Changed the Face of War Reporting was shortlisted for the 2006 Orwell Prize. He is currently the BBC's developing world correspondent. He lives in London.

Customer Reviews

Average Rating 3.5

( 2 )

Rating Distribution

5 Star

(1)

4 Star

(0)

3 Star

(0)

2 Star

(1)

1 Star

(0)

Your Rating:

Review Guidelines

Tell the world what you think of this product.

Add Recommendations

Your Name: Create a Pen Name or Leave Anonymously

Barnes & Noble.com Review Rules

Our reader reviews allow you to share your comments on titles you liked, or didn't, with others. By submitting an online review, you are representing to Barnes & Noble.com that all information contained in your review is original and accurate in all respects, and that the submission of such content by you and the posting of such content by Barnes & Noble.com does not and will not violate the rights of any third party. Please follow the rules below to help ensure that your review can be posted.

Reviews by Our Customers Under the Age of 13

We highly value and respect everyone's opinion concerning the titles we offer. However, we cannot allow persons under the age of 13 to have accounts at BN.com or to post customer reviews. Please see our Terms of Use for more details.

What to exclude from your review:

Please do not write about reviews, commentary, or information posted on the product page. If you see any errors in the information on the product page, please send us an email.

Reviews should not contain any of the following:

- HTML tags, profanity, obscenities, vulgarities, or comments that defame anyone
- Time-sensitive information such as tour dates, signings, lectures, etc.
- Single-word reviews. Other people will read your review to discover why you liked or didn't like the title. Be descriptive.
- Comments focusing on the author or that may ruin the ending for others
- Phone numbers, addresses, URLs
- Pricing and availability information or alternative ordering information
- Advertisements or commercial solicitation

Reminder:

- By submitting a review, you grant to Barnes & Noble.com and its sublicensees the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable right and license to use the review in accordance with the Barnes & Noble.com Terms of Use.
- Barnes & Noble.com reserves the right not to post any review -- particularly those that do not follow the terms and conditions of these Rules. Barnes & Noble.com also reserves the right to remove any review at any time without notice.
- See Terms of Use for other conditions and disclaimers.

Anonymous

Posted February 20, 2010

IN Afganistan

an impresive account of Afganistan's resistance to empire building that
provides a well documented list of players and tells how a backword
nation without a strong central government can be easily conquered
but never held while incurring great expense to the invaders.
This should be required reading for every government official involved
with Afgan policy.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.
Anonymous

Posted March 24, 2012

No text was provided for this review.

If you find inappropriate content, please report it to Barnes & Noble