No good men among the living: America, the Taliban, and the war through Afghan eyes

A haunting ethnography of Afghanistan after the American invasion, journalist Gopal's nonfiction debut tells the stories of three individuals to create a picture of the situation in Afghanistan. Gopal spent hundreds of hours interviewing a Taliban commander, a member of the U.S.-backed Afghan government, and a village housewife. He presents a stirring critique of American forces who commanded overwhelming firepower, but lacked the situational knowledge to achieve their objectives. Men with the ear of American commanders often took advantage of their credulity to destroy their enemies, making little effort to determine their affiliations. Gopal writes of one hapless bus driver, who spent nearly five years in Guantanamo and was prohibited from presenting evidence that he was not a member of the Taliban, because there was "no accusation against [him]" that suggested this affiliation. Heela, the housewife, has the most remarkable story of the three: in closing pages of the book she becomes a senator, unaware until winning that she was even in the running. Gopal reveals the fragility of the tenuous connection between intention and destiny in a war-torn land. (May) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

The war in Afghanistan and the involvement of the United States in it has been the subject of numerous publications in recent years. Much of the narrative of the American government's policy in Afghanistan has been couched in the context of the "War on Terror." In this original and stimulating book, journalist and New America Foundation Fellow Gopal, who has covered the Afghan War and other international crises for the Wall Street Journal and the Christian Science Monitor, focuses on the narratives of three Afghans (a Taliban commander, a U.S.--supported warlord, and a village housewife) to describe blunders and failures of U.S. policy in the Middle East. The author clearly demonstrates that within months of the U.S. invasion and occupation of Afghanistan the top Taliban leaders were ready to surrender to American authorities; submit to the new Afghan government; and eschew further political and military activities. However, for a variety of reasons, chief among them false intelligence from corrupt Afghan warlords, the United States did not take this unique opportunity to end the Taliban insurgency in that country. Thus, what Gopal considers to be Washington's missteps allowed the Taliban to resurrect and strengthen itself, as the insurgency continues to destabilize Afghanistan. VERDICT Policymakers and informed readers will benefit immensely from this illuminating book.-Nader Entessar, Univ. of South Alabama, Mobile (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

The war in Afghanistan and the involvement of the United States in it has been the subject of numerous publications in recent years. Much of the narrative of the American government's policy in Afghanistan has been couched in the context of the "War on Terror." In this original and stimulating book, journalist and New America Foundation Fellow Gopal, who has covered the Afghan War and other international crises for the Wall Street Journal and the Christian Science Monitor, focuses on the narratives of three Afghans (a Taliban commander, a U.S.-supported warlord, and a village housewife) to describe blunders and failures of U.S. policy in the Middle East. The author clearly demonstrates that within months of the U.S. invasion and occupation of Afghanistan the top Taliban leaders were ready to surrender to American authorities; submit to the new Afghan government; and eschew further political and military activities. However, for a variety of reasons, chief among them false intelligence from corrupt Afghan warlords, the United States did not take this unique opportunity to end the Taliban insurgency in that country. Thus, what Gopal considers to be Washington's missteps allowed the Taliban to resurrect and strengthen itself, as the insurgency continues to destabilize Afghanistan. VERDICT Policymakers and informed readers will benefit immensely from this illuminating book.—Nader Entessar, Univ. of South Alabama, Mobile

A haunting ethnography of Afghanistan after the American invasion, journalist Gopal's nonfiction debut tells the stories of three individuals to create a picture of the situation in Afghanistan. Gopal spent hundreds of hours interviewing a Taliban commander, a member of the U.S.-backed Afghan government, and a village housewife. He presents a stirring critique of American forces who commanded overwhelming firepower, but lacked the situational knowledge to achieve their objectives. Men with the ear of American commanders often took advantage of their credulity to destroy their enemies, making little effort to determine their affiliations. Gopal writes of one hapless bus driver, who spent nearly five years in Guantanamo and was prohibited from presenting evidence that he was not a member of the Taliban, because there was "no accusation against " that suggested this affiliation. Heela, the housewife, has the most remarkable story of the three: in closing pages of the book she becomes a senator, unaware until winning that she was even in the running. Gopal reveals the fragility of the tenuous connection between intention and destiny in a war-torn land. (May)

A haunting ethnography of Afghanistan after the American invasion, journalist Gopal's nonfiction debut tells the stories of three individuals to create a picture of the situation in Afghanistan. Gopal spent hundreds of hours interviewing a Taliban commander, a member of the U.S.-backed Afghan government, and a village housewife. He presents a stirring critique of American forces who commanded overwhelming firepower, but lacked the situational knowledge to achieve their objectives. Men with the ear of American commanders often took advantage of their credulity to destroy their enemies, making little effort to determine their affiliations. Gopal writes of one hapless bus driver, who spent nearly five years in Guantanamo and was prohibited from presenting evidence that he was not a member of the Taliban, because there was "no accusation against " that suggested this affiliation. Heela, the housewife, has the most remarkable story of the three: in closing pages of the book she becomes a senator, unaware until winning that she was even in the running. Gopal reveals the fragility of the tenuous connection between intention and destiny in a war-torn land. (May)