"Germs of War: is a fast action book that will appeal to those who like international intrigue with a biological twist.

Author Ketan Desai is obviously very well-informed about the destructive capabilities of biological weapons, and uses his knowledge to construct a plausible, unique and fast-paced thriller that is at once absorbing and unsettling.

The premise of the book is that there are forces in the world able and eager to wreak havoc on humankind--and superior expertise and eternal vigilance are necessary to defeat them. The author uses the names of actual medical and political institutions to make his point. For example, some of the action takes place at the prestigious Mayo Clinic. There an American doctor with an inflated ego (not on the staff)is easy prey to flattery and consequent cooperation he later has serious cause to regret. The doctor's female assistant is a counterfoil whose quick thinking and equally fast action keep the international terrorists off balance. Desai makes evident the threat posed to humanity when superior scientific knowledge is coupled with mad fanaticism. In the end the reader is very glad "Germs of War" is fiction and not today's news release!

The book Guerilla Strategies by Gerard Chaliand is an antholgy of various Guerilla movements and some counter insurgencey operations. Though not indepth in any one area it does serve as a fair basis for additional research to be done. It also provides a good bibliography for easier study of all the various operations in his book. The text and introduction are fair to good. Definitely one of the books that should be included in a military strategy and tactics library. Treat it like a primer for learning various strategies and tactics

In "Horses of Heaven," acclaimed writer Gillian Bradshaw goes far into the past to tell the story of Heliokleia, a beautiful, Bactrian (pre-Greek), Buddhist queen, and her marriage to the elderly Ferghanan king, Mauakes. Mauakes has a grown son from a previous marriage, Itaz, who detests and fears the Bactrians. This is a fairly typical Tristan-and-Isolde theme: what saves it from the commonplace by Ms. Bradshaw's beautiful writing, her clear, subtle world-building, and her creation of layered, multi-leveled characters. Elements of the supernatural are introduced in a low-key and fairly believable way (insofar as having conversations with ghosts are "believable.") A very good, well-written, engaging story, with intriguing glimpses into the pre-Christian world.

This book has been professionally written by Mr. Harrison, which talks about what Baluch nationalism really meant. The author really tries to talk about the issues rather than the made up theories about nationalism. Being a baluch in the decade of innovation and globalization, it really helped me understand the why the Baluchs took on the Pakistan army; not for personal glory but for a cause most people in Pakistan do not want to understand and don't understand.
The interviews with Baluchi tribal leaders, really gives the book the authencity the most other books miss out on. What really impressed me, was the authors commitment, when he interviewed Baluchi guerilla fighters, rather than telling the same old stories about them for an outsiders prespective. Although I know that most people, have never even heard of the Baluchi people, but anyone who ever gets interested in the Baluchi people and their issues should read this book as it explains from scrath the ideology behind the Baluchi struggle for both idependence and justice by the hands of other Pakistanis. And the brief but informative chapter in the begining gives a good back ground to the origins of the Baluchi people.

A pretty good read. Interessting details about the war with Russia, many of which I am sure are true. Gave me a better understanding of the Afgan people. The write goes a little "Tom Clancy" at times, but it's a good book and I think, for the most part, based on truth.

Peter Levi is himself a remarkable figure: An English Jesuit who is a poet, art historian, classicist,and sometime archaeologist. "Light Garden of the Angel King" is Levi's account of his travels in Afghanistan in the late 1960s as he looked for remnants of Greek presence and examined the influences of Hellenistic art, and it's a wonderfully crafted piece. Spare, elegant, softly ironic, and informed by a sensitive intelligence and a deep knowledge of the classical world. Levi is able to evoke not only the age of Alexander's Bactrian conquests but the beauties and complexities of Islamic architecture and poetry and the travails of learning Persian. His travel companion here was the young Bruce Chatwin, and Chatwin's presence (and his fascination with nomads) gives this book a wonderful set of stories. The Afghanistan of the book is long gone, shattered by twenty years of invasion, resistance, and civil war, and for anyone who loves Central Asia, "Light Garden" is a reminder of a long-vanished world. It's very different from Newby's "Short Walk in the Hindu Kush" or Byron's classic "Road to Oxiana", but it is a brilliant travel book in its own right. Very much worth owning!

With recent world events, I thought this book might prove interesting. Some have even taken to looking at the Soviet experience in Afghanistan in a new light--casting them as protagonists. This book contains about a dozen personal accounts from Russian soldiers who served in Afghanistan during various periods of the war. A typical section starts with "My name is..." followed by when the soldier served and a description of his unit or duty. Each account ranges from about 6 to 20 pages. Those who are looking for a broad view of the war, or even military tactics will be disappointed. The real focus is on the day to day life of soldiers (not officers) completing their Afghan tour of duty. There are several common themes that run through all the accounts. First is the bitter hatred that almost all Soviet soldiers felt toward the officers appointed over them. This disdain was directed toward platoon commanders all the way to the top. The general consensus was that officers ("jackals") in the Soviet military were only operating in Afghanistan for their own self-interest. Officers would trade unit supplies, including weapons, to local Afghan merchants (or even guerillas) for consumer items such as blue jeans and tape players. These items would then be smuggled into the Soviet Union and sold on the black market for profit. Other contentious points between officers and enlisted included the unfairness of the military award system and the general lack of human respect shown by officers toward their soldiers. The second common theme was the lack of training Soviet soldiers had. Frequently they were given less than half the usual six months of basic training. Some soldiers never fired more than a few rounds, or even participated in squad level exercises. This lack of training was further compounded by the fact that many soldiers were shipped to Afghanistan to fill jobs that they were not originally trained to perform. The third common theme is the lack of a professional non-commisioned officer (NCO) corps in the Soviet army. Most soldiers were on two year conscriptions, and a pecking order based on seniority was the prevailing chain of command. A "junior" (under one year of service) was basically held in servitude by the "short-timers" (three to six months of service remaining). In between, a soldier was considered a "pheasant", not entitled to the privleges of a short-timer, but not quite as abused as a junior. The striking thing in several accounts was the brutality of the short-timers toward juniors. There were systematic beatings and a general atmosphere of terror prevailed. The officers tolerated this behavior, and generally kept better relations with short-timers in order to maintain control over the enlisted. The fourth theme was how poorly Soviet soldiers were supplied in Afghanistan. It seems that one of the first things that a junior experienced upon arrival was the pilfering of his personal supplies by short-timers. Additionally, food and uniforms were either inadequate or in short supply. The only thing not in short supply were weapons and ammunition. There are several other common themes, but these are the ones I remember off-hand. The conclusion that one can draw is that the Soviets were doomed to lose this conflict, and for reasons mainly internal to their own way of operating. It's clear that, with the exception of Spetznez and other special operations forces, the Soviets are incapable of fighting effectively in small unit actions of less than battalion size. Most of the reasons for this are revealed in the reading--poor training, rigid thought processes, an inexperienced conscript army with no NCO leadership, poor supply, and a lack of a clear objective for soldiers to work toward. Overall, this book captures the general sense of savagery and hopelessness that soldiers felt in Afghanistan. It is similar, in many respects, to some of the more pessimistic accounts given by veterans of the Vietnam war. It does an equally effective job of indicting the Soviet army and the war in Afghanistan. In fact, I think it may be more interesting as a guide to how the Soviet army operated at the small unit level than as a collection of personal histories of the Afghan war. One caveat--it seems that the authors had a definite agenda when assembling this book, and there isn't much balance to the given accounts. There's almost nothing positive mentioned about anything to do with army life or the war, but this does seem to be the majority opinion.

A just believable story about a P-3 Orion that is used to look for nuclear emissions. Apparently based on the author seeing a plane that might have done this.

The rest of the plot is a little less believable. Particularly the ending which seems tailor-made to be mellow dramati

This is a timely and important illustration of the history of the struggle of the women of Afghanistan. Brodsky describes a "cosmopolitan" Afghanistan that many Westerners are unaware once existed. Once, a society where 40% of all medical doctors were women, Afghanistan disintegrated into a feudal society dominated by the Soviet occupation in the late 1970's and various fundamentalist regime changes (including the Taliban) throughout the next 20 years.

Brodsky's book is a powerful response to the influx of burqa-dominated books that hit the market last year in the wake of 9/11. While books on the subject of Afghan women over the past year have focused primarily on the burqa as the ultimate image of oppression, Brodsky's book expands this narrow view as she depicts the life and death struggles of women who have fought (and continue to fight) a slow but persistent battle to gain basic human rights in a fundamentalist society that views them as worth half that of a man. In fact, Brodsky shines some light on the history of the burqa noting that in some cultures it is a woman's choice whether or not to wear burqa - a topic not adequately addressed by other books currently on the market.

Set in motion prior to the events of 9/11, Brodsky began this project in early 2001 with the goal of documenting the struggles of RAWA through the scope of resilience studies. As the U.S. led attack on the Taliban brought heavy media attention to Afghan women, Brodsky picked up the pace of her research and has produced a timely book that will attract a wide range of educated, politically conscious readers.

With All Our Strength opens with a riveting (if revolting) depiction of the execution of a 35 year-old women in a sports stadium in Kabul. Accused of murdering her husband, Zarmeena is led to the stadium in burqa where she is forced to kneel before the assembled city and is executed. Her execution is portrayed as a warning to the women of Kabul. RAWA members managed to videotape the execution in secret - had they been discovered, their fate would have no doubt been the same.

And so goes this appalling account of life in Afghanistan. Though the history is somewhat repetitive at times, Brodsky's strength lies in effectively balancing Afghanistan's history with personal accounts of RAWA members and succeeds in creating an engaging and informative narrative that will leave readers demanding action.

A book you should read and pass on. The website also provides invaluable information - though you should be prepared for a very graphic encounter.