Book description
Rory Stewart's moving, sparsely poetic account of his walk across
Afghanistan in January 2002 has been immediately hailed as a classic.
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 Mohgul Emperor, Babur the Great,
Stewart was nearly defeated by the extreme, hostile conditions. Only due
to 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. 'This is
traveling at its hardest and travel-writing at its best' - David Gilmour
'an astonishing achievement: a unique journey of great courage' - Colin
Thubron 'wise, funny and marvelously humane' - Michael Ignatieff '[this]
evocative book feels like a long lost relic of the great age of
exploration' - Guardian 'His encounters with Afghans are tragic,
touching and terrifying.' - Daily Telegraph
Rory Stewart was born in Hong Kong and grew up in Malaysia. After a
brief period in the British Army, he studied history and philosophy at
Balliol College, Oxford before joining the Foreign Office. He served
in the British Embassy in Indonesia and as the British Representative
in Montenegro. In 2000 he began walking from Turkey to Bangladesh,
covering 6000 miles alone on foot across Afghanistan, Pakistan, India
and Nepal. In 2003, he became the coalition Deputy Governor of Maysan
and Dhi Qar, two provinces in the Marsh Arab region of Southern Iraq.
He was awarded the Order of the British Empire in 2004 and is
currently a Fellow of the Carr Centre at Harvard University.
