The Afghans

‘As an exploration of the social fabric of Afghan life, this book takes some beating’ Daily Telegraph

‘A valuable addition to the canon of literature on Afghanistan … [Seierstad] manages to achieve a rare intimacy’ New York Times

‘Asne Seierstad is one of the greatest, most courageous journalists of our time. . . This is an important, heartbreaking book’ Eric Schlosser, author of Fast Food Nation

From the internationally bestselling author of The Bookseller of Kabul, this is an unforgettable portrait of three people living under the Taliban today.

There is Jamila, a women’s rights activist who got an education when few women could; Bashir, a Taliban commander who grew up eager to avenge a father killed by security forces; and Ariana, a law student who is now barred from her university and facing the prospect of an arranged marriage to a man she does not love. Through the stories of these three Afghans, we experience what it is to live under the Taliban now, and think about where this leaves Afghans today, and tomorrow.

‘Ambitious … absorbing’ Boston Globe

‘An astonishing feat of writing and reporting . . . one of the finest books written on Afghanistan in a generation’ Eliza Griswold, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Amity and Prosperity

‘Harrowing, uplifting, fascinating, challenging and profound, no other recent book on the subject comes close’ CPW Gammell, author of The Pearl of Khorasan: A History of Herat

‘Asne Seierstad is the supreme non-fiction writer of her generation’ Luke Harding

Author Biography

Asne Seierstad was born in 1970 and studied Russian, Spanish and the History of Philosophy at Oslo University. An internationally bestselling author, she has also received numerous awards for her journalism. She has worked as a war correspondent across the world, including Russia, China, Iraq and Afghanistan. Her second book, The Bookseller of Kabul, has sold over two million copies and the paperback was in the Sunday Times top ten for over a year. Her other critically acclaimed works include A Hundred and One Days: A Baghdad Journal and The Angel of Grozny. Following the atrocities in Oslo and Utoya in July 2011, she attended the trial of Anders Breivik and then began work on One of Us, which became a European bestseller. All of Asne Seierstad’s books are published by Virago.