Afghanistan: A Cultural and Political History (Princeton Studies in Muslim Politics, 45) Paperback – March 25, 2012

I originally began reading this book by checking it out at my local library. It was a wealth of knowledge and therefore I decided to purchase it. I appreciate the thoroughness in understanding Afghanistan’s history. It is well written and dedicated to ensuring the reader understands what is rooted in the several transformations of Afghanistan.

Review -Afghanistan: A Cultural and Political History"Afghanistan: A Cultural and Political History" by Thomas Barfield is a learned, detailed, well written book by an anthropologist, not a historian. Thus we are privileged to see the landscape, the people, and rulers, the events through different eyes. Thomas Barfield not only tells us the history of kingdoms and kings, and battles and wars, but also tells us of the nature of the people of Afghanistan. He tells us of the why and the how of the history. The sweep is broad and the story dramatic.Thomas Barfield writes with an educated tongue. I am glad I have my copy as an ebook so as to use the easy access to a dictionary. But the writing is clear and intriguing. The story is well told and fascinating. The detail is crisp and clear.The book is copyrighted 2010, as a part of the Princeton Studies in Muslim Politics. Looking through the titles in the collection, this book is in highly esteemed company.Thomas Barfield brings us right up to 2010 with many observations on the status of the politics of Afghanistan at that time. He spends time tracing the "longe duree" and how that long history impacts Afghanistan today. Thus, if you are looking for a book placing the current events in Afghanistan in their historical context, this is it. And it does it very well. Some may disagree with his conclusions. But Thomas Barfield supports his conclusions well. The book is well worth the read.

Fascinating read. Many times you wonder about the countries that we hear about in the news and to completely understand the back-story it is important to pick up a book like this one.To call Afghanistan backward would be improper; to call them out of date would be accurate. The author takes is through the turmoil that the country has dealt with for nearly 3 centuries. The conquers and those that the people defeated.In the end you come out with a deep respect for these people but wonder what is the best course of action to take. Should the US support this country with troops and financial aid or would it be best to back out and allow the country to do what it has always done.The author makes the process much more convoluted when he clearly shows his bias against President Bush near the end of the book. He clearly does not appreciate the near complete withdrawal of troops after the defeat of the Taliban but then makes it clear that the problems that have arisen in the aftermath are issues that only Afghanistan can correct...so which is it?The fact that this country has so much potential and growth makes it a country to continue to watch for years to come.

Afghanistan is a notoriously complex country with a notoriously complex history. Barfield has done a fantastic job of presenting a balanced overview of its history. At times, my head spun as I tried to keep the long cast of characters straight, but when I finished I felt like I had a better grasp on Afghanistan than when I started.If I had to make a light criticism, I would say that the first half of the book is a bit tougher to read because it deals in demographics and geography. It reminded me a bit of of the early sections of Louis Dupree's book, Afghanistan.The book's biggest strength is the history of Afghanistan since 1901. (I felt like it was the most relevant part to understanding the US effort there.) Since 1901, every Afghan leader has been either killed or exiled. I thought that was a striking piece of information given the US's contentious relationship with President Karzai.I give the book five starts and a must read for anyone interested in the US effort in Afghanistan. For people who follow Afghanistan very closely, some of it will be a review, but I suspect Afghan watchers of all levels of expertise will benefit from reading this book.

Great insight! Interesting history and how history happened, the politics, foreign countries trying to control and use Afghanistan. Good read!

Barfield brings an extremely useful combination of skills to bear on his explanation of Afghanistan. In his concise account of Afghani history over the last few centuries he draws on the ability of the social anthropologist to give us the whys of belief, behaviour and process that help us understand the whats of events. He also has the refreshing ability to draw on the whole range of sources in these explanations, including specifically Islamic analyses. One of the best things about this book is the way it avoids the convenient-thinking trap of "eternal Afghanistan": the author can draw sharp distinctions between elements of vigorous continuity in Afghani history and culture, and elements of dramatic and irreversible change. For students of Afghanistan as The Graveyard Of Imperial Ambition, I would rank this as one of the two most useful books to read, the other being Gen. Skeen's 1932 "Lessons In Imperial Rule", a cheerfully brisk booots-on-the-ground military analysis of why military invaders were inevitably bound for grief.

Thomas Barfield does an excellent job introducing readers to the complicated history of Afghanistan and its political legacies. If you are solely interested in learning about the country itself or are a historical reader, this is a great introduction but not the only book to rely on. As stated in the title, the political systems are of primary interest and Barfield connects them to important theories of political legitimacy, society formation, and international relations. Could only have wished for more details throughout the eras he covers.