For Prophet and Tsar: Islam and Empire in Russia and Central Asia2 reviews Robert D. Crews Harvard University Press, 2006 An outstanding study Robert Crews' pathbreaking book forces us to rethink Imperial Russia's relationship with its Muslim populations. Elegantly written, and drawing on sources in numerous languages from largely untapped archives, Crews' work is balanced and insightful. It is sure to become a classic.             Balkan Ghosts: A Journey Through History121 reviews Robert D. Kaplan Picador, 2005 Excellent and broad sweeping introduction to the Balkans + Chosen Histories Come home to Roost + A Traveler's View of the Balkans Robert Kaplan's Balkan Ghosts is more than a travel book for most of his experiences in the Balkan's were far from tourism. Rather, like Rebecca West's Black Lamb and Grey Falcon, his book explores time and place with the precision of an anthropologist. Kaplan points out that this area of the ...             Tamerlane's Children: Dispatches from Contemporary Uzbekistan3 reviews Robert Rand Oneworld Publications, 2006 Worth Picking Up There have been a handful of books published lately that can be considered part of a small "went to work in Central Asia, kept a journal, and made a book from it" genre. Examples include Uzbekistan a Short Road Traveled by William Duncan, Keith Rosten's Once in Kazakhstan: The Snow Leopard Emerges, ...             The New Central Asia: The Creation of Nations5 reviews Olivier Roy NYU Press, 2000 Caution to the reader + Sometimes tough going, but provides useful insights + Making Sense of Central Asia + Making Sense of Central Asia             Chasing the Sea: Lost Among the Ghosts of Empire in Central Asia54 reviews Tom Bissell Pantheon, 2003 Been there, done that, GREAT BOOK + A Highly Readable Book + You can go home again....but maybe you shouldn't Ever since reading Stein many years ago, I *knew* that I had to go to Central Asia someday to see what was there. Having just covered the same geography as the author [overland], I would recommend this book as the most realistic on Central Asia of the current batch out there. Yes, he obsesses ...             Tajikistan: Disintegration or Reconciliation (Central Asian and Caucasian Prospects) Shirin Akiner Royal Institute of International Affairs, 2002 The author analyzes the internal and external dynamics of the Tajik conflict, assessing the relative weight of the political, ideological, ethnic, and regional factors. He also considers the impact of developments in Tajikistan for the wider Central Asian region and the prospects for a lasting peace and economic recovery.             Ornamentalism: How the British Saw Their Empire13 reviews David Cannadine Oxford University Press, USA, 2002 An unbiased look at how class was the engine for Empire. + An Important Aspect of the British Empire + Brits on a spit -- and one in the eye for the occidentalists + Excellent change to the typical historiography             Jihad: The Rise of Militant Islam in Central Asia30 reviews Ahmed Rashid Penguin (Non-Classics), 2002 Valuable and Important Book + The root of civilization's problem. + Problem for Central Asia + Jihad: Book Review             This Is Not Civilization19 reviews Robert Rosenberg Mariner Books, 2005 Illuminating read for travel to Kyrgyzstan The title of this novel unfortunately created some awkward moments when the tour leader borrowed this book and noted from the first few pages that his mother is from the village where it is set. "An why is it called This is Not Civilization," he asked. The novel is divided among three different ...             Islam after Communism: Religion and Politics in Central Asia1 review Adeeb Khalid University of California Press, 2007 A much needed corrective One cannot consider themselves knowledgeable in the slightest about Central Asia if they have not read this book. Basically, the states of Central Asia are more a threat against Muslims then Muslims are a threat to the states. Written for a general audience, though still scholarship at the highest ...             The Birth of Tajikistan: National Identity and the Origins of the Republic (International Library of Central ... Paul Bergne I. B. Tauris, 2007 A vivid history of the birth of a nation. When the Russian Revolution broke out in October 1917, much of Central Asia was still ruled by autonomous rulers such as the Emir of Bukhara and the Khan of Khiva. By 1920 the khanates had been transformed into People's Republics, and, in 1924, Stalin re-drew the frontiers on ethno-linguistic lines creating, amongst other statelets, the Soviet Socialist ...             Cold War Orientalism: Asia in the Middlebrow Imagination, 1945-19613 reviews Christina Klein University of California Press, 2003 The Cold War Was Much More Than Containment and McCarthyism + Key To Understanding the Baby Boomer Generation + New Understanding Of East and West During the Cold War Christina Klein contends that the paradigm of the Truman Doctrine can not offer a complete understanding of Cold War American culture or policy. She juxtaposes its policy of global communist containment with a 1957 speech by American diplomat Francis Wilcox that harped the need to educate Americans ...             Modern Clan Politics: The Power Of "Blood" In Kazakhstan and Beyond Edward Schatz University of Washington Press, 2004 Edward Schatz explores the politics of kin-based clan divisions in the post-Soviet state of Kazakhstan. Drawing from extensive ethnographic and archival research, interviews, and wide-ranging secondary sources, he highlights a politics that poses a two-tiered challenge to current thinking about modernity and Central Asia. First, asking why kinship divisions do not fade from political life with ...             The New Great Game: Blood and Oil in Central Asia25 reviews Lutz Kleveman Grove Press, 2004 Plus ça change... + The Real Deal + A Unique Perspective + Excellent writing, well researched, very relevant + Travelogue on Central Asia, Oil, and Conflict             Persian Fire: The First World Empire and the Battle for the West46 reviews Tom Holland Anchor, 2007 Do you want to know how it all happened? + 300 free men. (Oh, and a thousand slaves.) + In the Footsteps of Herodotus + Absolute Brilliance + Vivid account of a superpower's defeat             The Mongol Warlords: Ghengis Khan, Kublai Khan, Hulegu, Tamerlane (Heroes & Warriors)5 reviews David Nicolle Firebird, 1990 Great reference with outstanding illustrations + Good Biographies. + A Very Versatile History of Mongol Conquest + Tons of great pictures and drawings + Great Book             In Search of Genghis Khan: An Exhilarating Journey on Horseback across the Steppes of Mongolia2 reviews Tim Severin Cooper Square Press, 2003 Interesting Mix of Mongolian Travel and History + a decent adventure story In this book Tim Severin is not really searching for Genghis Khan himself, as the title states, but for traces of the lifestyle and traditions in the modern world that have been inspired by the great leader. Severin traveled throughout the vast and sparse nation of Mongolia, mostly by horse and in ...             Shadow of the Silk Road (P.S.)24 reviews Colin Thubron Harper Perennial, 2008 Un libro hipnotizante + Love World Cultures + In the Footsteps of Marco Polo + Travel and thoughts on a vanishing world             A History of Inner Asia4 reviews Svat Soucek Cambridge University Press, 2000 A modern fascinating account This book follows the history of 'inner asia' from the time of the Islamic conquests to modern day independence. The area covered is the steppe lands from Mongolia to the former soviet republics(Kazakhstan, Uzbek, Tajik, Turkmen and Kyrgiz) as well as the Sinkiang(Xinxiang/Uiguer) province of ...             Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan Map1 review GiziMap (Firm) GiziMap, 2006 Map-a-licous I have traveled all over this crazy world, from Nazi Germany to impoverished Indian villages to a scary cave where they keep that crazy old knight. And when I travel I like to use maps. Not those fancy nancy Rand McNally pretty boy maps, but a real man's map, a Gizi Map. Because when you're facing ...