Few countries have been as poorly imagined
or exposed to parochial strategists and commentators
as Afghanistan. Excavating and examining previously unknown Afghan literary texts and authors, this wonderfully timely and stimulating book radically deepens our sense of the country's history and culture.
Pankaj Mishra, author of From the Ruins of Empire: The Revolt Against the West and the Remaking of Asia ... Read moreA fascinating history of a complicated region as it struggles to establish and solidify a national identity through language and literature. ... Afghanistan in Ink is the first book of its kind to treat the region with the depth and subtlety necessary for a reader to properly learn something, and one hopes that those who pick up the reins will continue to put as much care into their work as those who contributed here.
LSE Review of Books Afghanistan in Ink demolishes the myth that the country has remained isolated from the the currents of international cultural influences. For more than a century powerful connections to an influential intellectual diaspora have played a significant role in the development of Afghan literature and language politics
and one that continues to the present day.
Thomas Barfield, Professor of Anthropology at Boston University and author of Afghanistan: A Cultural and Political History An extremely absorbing collection of essays: not only does this book take the reader deep into the literature of Afghanistan over the last few centuries, but it explores fruitful questions about the ways in which literature and language, state-formation, ethnic identity, and history are intertwined. Highly informative and though-provoking.
Tamim Ansary, author of Games Without Rules, The Often Interrupted Story of Afghanistan Afghanistan in Ink, a timely and important volume, is full of...striking illuminations...It does important service bringing to notice a variety of Afghan writers...and placing them in their literary and social contexts...An excellent attempt to provide as comprehensive an overview as possible of Afghan Literature in the modern period.
Bijan Omrani, Asian Affairs Show Less