The Places In Between: A vivid account of a death-defying walk across war-torn Afghanistan
Sep 2009 · Pan Macmillan
4.4star
18 reviews
Ebook
336
Pages
About this ebook
A moving account of a death-defying walk across war-torn Afghanistan in January 2002 from Rory Stewart, bestselling author of Politics on the Edge and host of the hit podcast The Rest Is Politics.
Caught between hostile nations, warring factions and competing ideologies, at the time Afghanistan was in turmoil following the US invasion. Travelling entirely on foot and following the inaccessible mountainous route once taken by the Mogul Emperor, Babur the Great, Stewart was nearly defeated by the extreme, hostile conditions.
Only with the help of an unexpected companion and the generosity of the people he met on the way did he survive to report back with unique insight on a region closed to the world by twenty-four years of war.
'With a deft, at time poetic vividness, he describes an awesome landscape . . . His encounters with Afghans are tragic, touching and terrifying – Daily Telegraph
Winner of the Royal Society of Literature Ondaatje Award and the Spirit of Scotland Award.
Shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award, the John Llewellyn Rhys Memorial Prize, and the Scottish Book of the Year Prize.
Caught between hostile nations, warring factions and competing ideologies, at the time Afghanistan was in turmoil following the US invasion. Travelling entirely on foot and following the inaccessible mountainous route once taken by the Mogul Emperor, Babur the Great, Stewart was nearly defeated by the extreme, hostile conditions.
Only with the help of an unexpected companion and the generosity of the people he met on the way did he survive to report back with unique insight on a region closed to the world by twenty-four years of war.
'With a deft, at time poetic vividness, he describes an awesome landscape . . . His encounters with Afghans are tragic, touching and terrifying – Daily Telegraph
Winner of the Royal Society of Literature Ondaatje Award and the Spirit of Scotland Award.
Shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award, the John Llewellyn Rhys Memorial Prize, and the Scottish Book of the Year Prize.
Ratings and reviews
4.4
18 reviews
Angela Styles
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November 10, 2019
Sometimes terrifying, sometimes hilarious and a couple of heartbreakingly sad moments. On the one hand, it captures the therapeutic nature of long distance walking - absorbing the natural beauty of the world, getting a glimpse of the way of life of others and focusing your attention on the single objective of walking somewhere each day. On the other -it gives an insight into the complexity and chaos of Afghanistan just after the fall of the Taliban. The prose is beautiful and eloquent but accessible and easy to read.
3 people found this review helpful
Mateen Khwaja
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October 26, 2022
A travel of phenomenal courage recounted in a very matter of fact but still touching prose. Babur the dog really killed it till he died tragically in the end.
Foad Naghsh
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April 1, 2020
I respect the author's dedication to his beliefs and in his determination to discover realities and truths. The literary style of writing is about average.
5 people found this review helpful
About the author
Rory Stewart was born in Hong Kong and grew up in Malaysia. After a brief period in the British army, he joined the Foreign Office, serving in the Embassy in Indonesia and as British Representative in Montenegro, Yugoslavia. In 2002 he completed a 6,000 mile walk from Turkey to Bangladesh. His account of crossing Afghanistan on foot shortly after the US invasion, The Places In Between, was published in 2004, drew widespread acclaim, and was shortlisted for that year's Guardian First Book Award. He was awarded an OBE in 2004 for his work in Iraq. From 2006 to 2008 he lived in Kabul, where he was the Chief Executive of the Turquoise Mountain Foundation; in 2009 he was appointed to a professorial chair at Harvard University as the Ryan Family Professor of Human Rights; and in 2010 he was elected as Member of Parliament for Penrith and the Border.
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