Rating: 
Summary: An "enlightening" journey
Review: In our culture we are used to the typical plot structures that pervade our movies, books and plays. If this is what you want, look elsewhere: there is plenty to find your fill. If you seek to wander, as I believe most of us should for the sake of self-realization, this is a great start. The book for me served several purposes & is particularly interesting given current events in this part of the world, as the author intersperses his take on true American interests in Afghanistan as seen through the eyes of some Afghanis. But the kernel of the book is found at the beginning where the author apprises the reader that he is not sure why he is writing the book. The answer is found at the end of this journey where Elliot acknowledges the personal challenge he set for himself:
" . . . was it possible to enlarge the space in oneself where the raw material of experience might sit awhile, before being decanted in the usual way."
In other words, experience for the sake of itself--no agenda, no itinerary, no set bounds. This writer sought an immersive experience of something that was so foreign to him from the standpoint of his own cultural upbringing but nonetheless drew him in resistlessly.
This struck a deep chord for me as it is what travel should be: a journey in the highest spiritual sense. The reader is fortunate to be taken along albeit piecemeal on this quietly epic journey, to paraphrase the author. I recommend this book to those who appreciate the journey as an entity of itself, where every step is a new, potentially life-altering affair. But for those who are more inclined to seek a direct path from point A to point B, you must first strip yourself of these conventional "western" notions. I did & am the better for it.
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Summary: A review of An unexpected Light by Jason Eliott
Review: Jason Eliott is simply not a Dalrymple and he will never be. "An Unexpected Light", is a long, verbose accounting of some travels in wartime Afghanistan. It is tedious reading. It is boring reading. It grieves me to read that when the author attempts to be instructive and presents the nomenclature of the genus and species of trees in Latin, they are all wrongly spelt. This is an indication of the "sloppiness" of this novel. This is the first book which I have bought and which will find its way to a second hand bookstore quickly. I suppose, having worked two years in Afghanistan during the late 1970s' and having returned during 1991, that this makes me realize that I expected much more. Pity, he rode a donkey and produced a donkey's tale.
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Summary: Reminder of why things are the way they are...
Review: Jason Elliot gives us a lyrical and cogent account of the Afghan people, their country, and their history in this moving travelogue. If you're looking for a book that gives you a pre-September 11th look at Afghanistan, look no further. Elliot, a British traveler, gives himself over to the spirit of travel and Afghan hospitality with a frequency and a belief in fate that is astounding. I thoroughly enjoyed Elliot's numerous forays into hostile territories and his accounts of the people that went out of their way to protect him and give him lodging. As a fairly recent travelogue, this serves as an interesting look into where things stood, just before recent events that resurfaced interest in Afghanistan - a nation which we (the US) had paid little attention to since the Soviet occupation ended more than a decade ago. Highly recommended. The only reason I gave it four stars, as opposed to 5, were a couple of long winded flights of historical fancy, that took away some of the book's impact.
Rating: 
Summary: Outsiders Inside Look at Afghanistan
Review: Jason Elliot immerses himself into Afghanistan twice, once in 1979 with the Mujahadeen, and once again in 1989 to see a land still in the throes of war. Perhaps he will still get a chance to revisit the country in 2009, to get a perspective of the latest iteration of warfare and it's nature and tragic effect on the people of the Country. At this rate anything's possible.I almost dinged this book for Elliot's occasional writing style that dips into the area of over-flowery, fanciful, and meandering, but surprisingly enough if you keep reading, he keeps this distraction to a minimum. I believe what Elliot achieves with "An Unexpected Light" is the best account of what Afghanistan and its people are like that can be achieved by a Western writer. The reader must be cautioned to not take Elliot's perception at face value for the truth of how Afghani's think and feel and live. That local perspective would have to be gained by a book that was written by an Afghani and translated into English. To my knowledge there isn't a book out there like that available to English readers. If you know of one, by all means shoot it my way. At first I thought the approach Elliot was taking in writing this book, was to toss himself haphazardly into as many life-threatening situations as humanely possible to experience and still live through it. Through these blood pressure pumping situations, at the end, Elliot would have himself a damn fine book. What I came to realize though is that the book was written about a love affair. A continual burning love affair that Elliot has for the country and especially the people of Afghanistan. That intense love shows, earning this book a special place amongst other travel writings. The work fills a distinct need to learn more about a country that Western nations' find themselves enmeshed in during the ongoing war on terrorism. Internalize this book. There's a need to make that knowledge your own. Now more than ever.
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Summary: Review
Review: Jason Elliot is a well-traveled journalist who has explored Afghanistan on several occasions. At the urging of a colleague, he decided to compile his experiences within the country into a novelesque travelogue. The book touches upon all aspects of Afghani life, culture, and people. Moreover, it truly gives one the sense of being a foreigner in such a complex country, and the author's bewilderment and awe at the Afghani world transcends the readers' consciousness. The novel also gains much credibility from the author's intense personal honesty throughout the novel, as Elliot admits acts such as drug use that most reporters would decline to admit.
An Unexpected Light should first be commended simply for its beautiful narrative style and vivid visual descriptions. When reading it, I felt as though I was walking alongside Elliot through the crowded city of Kabul and shared his feelings of fear and anxiety as he made his way through war-ravaged areas. This quality makes for not only easy reading, but also allows the reader to be involved in the tales of the novel rather than be constrained by the binds of objectivity. Such intense and captive glances into Afghanistan are indeed rare, and hence the novel is extremely useful for the average political science student, who often is confined to tedious and dry reading.
In addition to its aesthetic value, the travelogue holds mounds of information about the political history of Afghanistan. Regional wars, Soviet influence, and the Taliban are all talked about it great detail and one comes away with quite a comprehensive background on Afghanistan upon completion of the book. Moreover, Elliot manages to give an unbiased view of Afghanistan, that favors neither the Western nor non-Western world. This is of the utmost value to not only the average American, who is generally exposed only to American media, but also international agencies.
For example, while Elliot mentions the many injustices committed by the Taliban, he restrains from crediting them with all the negative occurrences in the country. The Taliban has received heavy condemnation for the destruction of ancient artifacts, but Elliot sheds light on the role of greedy art dealers in their disappearance. This take on the situation is in stark contrast to the American media and government, which is plagued by preemptive judgments and wholly negative views of Afghanistan in comparison to outside forces. Elliot also mentions the shift in American support for Afghanistan as soon as the Cold War was over, a fact that is often overlooked by the American public and media.
Overall, this novel is perhaps the best perspective on Afghanistan I have read or seen to date. It is unusually impartial and honest, and possesses the rarity of a positive view of the Afghani people and society. It is a great asset for individuals at every level, giving readers a greater social consciousness about a peculiar realm and also giving the world an unbiased and credible view of Afghanistan. After reading the book, I feel as though I finally know and understand the Afghani people, a major step in dealing with Afghanistan politically, socially, and economically. I would highly recommend Elliot's collection to anyone, especially those who wish to travel to the country and those who have vested economic or political interests in the region. Shirin Raza (002788950)
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Summary: An Unexpected Light: Travels in Afghanistan
Review: Jason Elliot's travels in Afghanistan are told with evocative poignancy of a land racked through the centuries by invading armies. Ravaged most recently by the Soviet Army and now by internal strife Afghanistan endures. Whether telling the tale of the Afghan warrior beckoning the rocket-shy author to step out of the cold but protected shadows of a Kabul doorway into the warmth of the sun, or the harrowing tale of a mountainous truck ride under the light of a crescent moon, Elliot shares the beauty and poetic delicacy of a rough but resilient land. This is classic travel writing which enraptures and enables the reader to smell and taste the smoke and dust of the journey , to feel the sharp bite of the cold mountain air as night descends, and captures, as the author says, " a ray of beauty out of the backdrop of harshness." The dignity of this land and its poetic people is shared with respect and startling skill by the author.
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Summary: An Unexpected Delight!
Review: Mr. Elliot, obviously, is well connected in contemporary Afghan circles, both outside and inside Afghanistan. This fact enabled and encouraged him to travel in a most unusual and remote country during a most difficult and turbulent era. The author did not travel on a preplanned itinerary but from the start surrendered, instead, to encounters and events. This underlying current gives the account much of its unique quality and realism. The book is richly strewn with delightful coinages, penetrating insights sensitive observations, humor, historical and other intriguing information and descriptions. The, included, short introduction to Sufism is quite good. Puts Afghanistan and its people on the map. Erudite. A gripping and moving account of people and places entangled in the web of war-time meshed with the author personal inner-journey. A tribute to the human spirit.
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Summary: Afghanistan's Conscience in the West
Review: Of the currently posted reviews, it is interesting that they either rate this book at the top or at the bottom of the rating scale. This is a sign that the book elicits much more comment on the reviewer's state of mind than on the book itself. My review will be no different. While I second those who extoll the book's poetry and its vivid portrayal of the Afghan land and culture, to me the real value of the book lies in its deepest appeal to the conscience (or lack of conscience) in the reader. Mr. Elliot's report is unique in that it covers two or three visits that he undertook that span the time during and after the Soviet war, just prior to Taleban occupation of Kabul and the roughly 90% of Afghanistan that it occupies today. During this time, under extremely difficult circumstances, Mr. Elliot had access to people and places that would shortly be cut off and, in many cases, destroyed during the ensuing Taleban onslaught. The result, both of the circumstances and Mr. Elliot's reporting on them, is a tale filled with longing--a longing for some of what is, much of what was and has been lost, and what may never be recovered, an innocence and deeply human sympathy ravaged by the cynicism of the world. Afghanistan was never an easy place to live, but it was long a place where humanity reigned supreme in the daily lives of common people. Some have called it the height of civilization, low-tech though it was. It had long been the seat of a kind of basic (and advanced) hospitality that has been all but lost, though much imitated, in much of the rest of the world. Elliot's deep love and intimate knowledge of these people and the remaining remnants of their culture informs every page of his vivid account. In the end, he leaves those of us with the conscience to respond with a deep sense of loss, yet with a vivid picture of hope for the future of our common human destiny. Yes, he makes us want to visit what was once Afghanistan, the Land of the Free. But even more, he makes us accutely aware of the Jewel that has been lost and that we must all find again to restore the vital center of our own particular human culture where we happen to live, among the common people of our daily lives.
Rating:
Summary: Unexpected Light
Review: Sane, sympathetic and trustworthy exploration of a difficult subject. Mr Hotte, whose review is above, is NOT to be trusted. He's a bit picky, isn't he?
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Summary: Safar-e khosh - Happy Travels
Review: So Jason Elliot introduces us to the paradoxes of Afghanistan, a land known for both brutally cold winters and warm, inviting inhabitants. Afghanistan is a country only infrequently visited by Westerners. Yet, Elliot visited twice - once, during the mujaheddin fight against the Soviet occupation, and again in the 1990s, when an internal struggle between the people of the country and the Taleban had begun in the South. Elliot has combined these two voyages in this incredibly poetic and lyrical travelogue. Elliot relies on the hospitality of strangers to visit some of the most remote reaches of Afghanistan. He travels to the Hindu Kush, Faizabad, and Herat. Along the way, Elliot meets both the indigenous population and other foreigners, and is able to bring the reader a glimpse of this land through the stories of both. This combines for a powerful understanding of the history and culture of Afghanistan, something which is sorely needed given the current political turn of events. His travels point to the spirit of the Afghan people, who feed their culture and faith despite external travails. Overall, this book is very highly recommended.
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