Return to Kabul: An Afghan American's Odyssey in Afghanistan

It had been thirty years since Abdullah Sharif moved away from his childhood home in Afghanistan-and upon returning as an American citizen and diplomat, he barely recognized the country he left behind. The once-thriving society and culture was replaced by devastation and unrest. The land, which had experienced its golden age between the 1930s and 1970s, had succumbed to a massive downfall.

It was then that Sharif began the first of two civilian deployments, dedicated to rebuilding peace and ...