BootsnAll Travel Community

I do not usually read novels, but I just finished this fine read and wanted to recommend it to anyone interested in Afghanistan or Central Asia. Raw and excruciating, but excellent. Sidebar: Did you know the life expectancy for a woman in Afghanistan is 43 years?

Next up is "The World is Flat" by Friedman, and a re-read of Blue Latitudes by Horowitz (his book reenacting the sailings of James Cook)- highly recommended for those with an interest in the Pacific.

Kite Runner is excellent. (and written by a SF Bay Area local writer) I could not put it down, which, for me, is a sign of something great. It is wrenching, and the writer really puts you in the middle of things. You feel for the main character, his best friend, father...everyone.

Loved the book. However, parts were very hard to read. I loaned it to a friend and she stopped reading it half way through because it kept her up at night.

Although I haven't read "Kite Runner," I would suggest "The Bookseller of Kabul" as well -- if you're interested in Afghanistan. It's a fictionalized account of the life of a family in Kabul told by a journalist who spent a bunch of time living with a family in Afghanistan.

Kite Runner is very good although I couldn't read it straight through. I had to take "emotional breaks" a couple of times and actually had to get up and walk around to physically shake off the bad stuff. I've never had to do that before.

Also really liked Blue Latitudes.

I'd like to hear what you think of "The World is Flat" after you read it. I've been thinking of checking that out myself.

Wow, great info here. I will have to check out all this books. If you guys know of any other books/movies related to Afghanistan that would be great.


Khudahafez

I would suggest "Chasing the Dragon" which isn't about Afghanistan at all, but rather Myanmar. However, a good deal of the book deals with the opium poppy trade in Myanmar and why it exists. Seeing as I believe Afghanistan is the 2nd or 3rd largest producer of opium, I bet there could be a lot of parallels.

Seemingly unrelated things like this often have a lot to do with why some countries are the way they are.

I read "An Unexpected Light" by Jason Elliot a few years ago about his wanderings in Afghanistan. It offers an interesting perspective and is worth a look.

An Unexpected Light: Travels in Afghanistan is a fantastic book.
I highly recommend it!

One of the greatest books that I have ever read. This book engages the reader like no other..I've read a faffillion books but none of them captured my attention as much as this one. I highly recommend it.