Reviews for The sewing circles of Herat

The average rating for The sewing circles of Herat based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2016-08-09 00:00:00 Fabio Silva I wouldn't place this among the best books I have read about Afghanistan but it still was a decent read. Christina Lamb, co-author of I Am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban, covered the Afghan war during the late 1980s. She returned to Afghanistan after September 11th to write about the people who lived under Taliban rule. This book was first published in 2002 and contains an afterword from Fall of 2003. Having spent time covering the war in the 1980s really turned out to be a huge asset for the author as she was able to interview key people for this book including Hamid Karzai who became Afghanistan president in December 2001. By far, the best parts of this book were the stories of the people of Afghanistan. Even though I have read quite a few books, specifically on the women in the country, I still learned quite a bit of info. While I knew books and museum artifacts had been destroyed under Taliban rule, I had never heard the story of an artist who used watercolors to cover over the faces and bodies of people on oil paintings so they wouldn't be destroyed. My biggest criticism of the book is it just didn't have a cohesive flow and at times could be hard to follow. I would not recommend this book if you aren't already familiar with the country and what has taken place in the last few decades. The history bits were usually placed in the middle of chapters and didn't really transition well. At times it felt like way too much unnecessary info was being provided. I much would have rather heard more from the people she interviewed and their experiences. I have to say it was interesting reading this book knowing that it was written over 15 years ago. I found myself wondering what has happened to some of the people she interviewed. There was a particular prediction from a man that is pretty spot on. He essentially stated the Taliban will never be defeated and they will just come back under a new name. It was pretty chilling to read his words knowing that the battle against terrorism in some ways is even more difficult now. I think this book probably had more of an impact when it was first published but in my opinion there are better books now on the market if you are interested in learning about Afghanistan. It certainly wasn't a wasted read but this isn't a book I would go out of my way to recommend like I have with others.

Review # 2 was written on 2019-10-15 00:00:00 Daniel Wright I read this,when it came out in 2004.British journalist,Christina Lamb returns to Afghanistan,following the US invasion and the fall of the Taliban,after having already been there during the Soviet occupation in the 1980s.(Those days are described in her Pakistan book,Waiting for Allah). For some reason,she has a strong affinity for the Afghan fighters,who in addition to fighting the Soviets and the Americans,have spilled the blood of their countrymen with abandon,too. There are some chilling depictions of the atrocities committed by the Taliban,and the restrictions and bans imposed by them. Lamb also renews her acquintance with Hamid Karzai,whom she had met earlier in Pakistan.He was President of Afghanistan at that time. Interestingly,while she finds a lot of fault elsewhere,particularly with Pakistan,she is quiet about the impact of the US invasion on the lives of Afghans,who were subjected to a massive aerial bombing campaign. She moves through Afghanistan,writes about the hardships of the lives of women and talks about receiving letters from an Afghan woman at periodic intervals. Despite being slanted and cynical,it is fairly interesting.