I have finally finished reading Carter Malkasian's slim book 'War Comes to Garmsir: Thirty Years of Conflict on the Afghan Frontier'. Read on the train commuting to London and Oxford and finally at home.

There are a number of other SWC reviews of the book in this thread and his name appears in nearly a dozen threads.

His style and the content are simply gripping. Human terrain at it's best, context, details and insight.

I have not read many of the books on the contemporary Afghan conflict, it is for this "armchair" observer too sad. This book is different, it is about the Afghan people, their leaders, institutions and their visiting foreign guests.

The last chapter, the conclusion 'The End or the Intermission', is excellent. I expect those who have served anywhere in Afghanistan, outside the wire, will agree with his reflections and so taken from his final paragraph:
What I think I can say is that Afghanistan surely will not be the last of America's interventions in messy wars in developing states - our history is too full to think otherwise......Garmser offers no answers as to whether such conflicts are worth it. It merely suggest they are likely to be troublesome, murky, messy and grey.
Link:http://www.amazon.com/War-Comes-Garm...rter+malkasian

If you now intend to buy a copy there is a SWJ link, so we get a commission.