‘Book Review’ Archives
Book review: Humanising the monster —by Dr Mohammad Taqi
My life with the Taliban By Abdul Salam Zaeef Translated from Pashto and edited by Alex Strick van Linschoten and Felix Kuehn Hurst/Columbia University Press; Pp 331 In his foreword to Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef’s book, Professor Barnett Rubin of New York University sets the stage for the launch, ostensibly, of a refreshingly authentic work [...]
Anatol’s Hard Country: Book Review – by Riaz Malik
About the author: Riaz Malik Corner Anyone who wants to know about Pakistan should read Anatol Lieven, Imran Khan and Zaid Hamid. Anyone who wants a rousing defense of our Pak Fauj should read Lieven. All those who want a nice skewering of (more...)
Book review: Taliban and Anti-Taliban, Another book to kill for? – by Khaled Ahmed
Another bombshell will have to be endured by the national Taliban narrative with 'Taliban and anti-Taliban' by Farhat Taj (Cambridge Scholars Publishing 2011), a Research Fellow at Centre for Interdisciplinary Gender Research, University of Oslo, Norway, an MPhil in Gender and Development from the University of Bergen, Norway. The book [...]
National Anthem of Pakistan -by Anwer Sen Roy
پاکستان کا قومی ترانہ انور سِن رائے بی بی سی اردو ڈاٹ کام، کراچی ایسا لگتا ہے کہ پاکستان میں جہاں مذہبی حلقے، شدت پسند سمجھے جانے لگے ہیں وہیں خود کو روشن خیال، لبرل اور سیکولر کہنے [...]
Book Review: The Redefined Dimensions of Baloch Nationlist Movement
Book: The Redefined Dimensions of Baloch Nationalist Movement By: Malik Siraj Akbar Editor The Balochhal Publishers: Xlibris Subject: Balochistan, Politics, Nationalism Book Reviewed by Arif Jamal Author of Shadow War: The Untold Story of Jihad in Kashmir Most Pakistanis, particularly in Punjab and urban Sindh, know little [...]
Book Review: A thousand and one tales of terror- by Dr Mohammad Taqi
The book is a news reporter’s entry into the world of analyzing current affairs and to an extent geopolitical forecasting. Off the bat, the author rejects the prevailing western understanding of al-Qaeda being on the ropes Book review: Inside Al-Qaeda and the Taliban: Beyond Bin Laden and 9/11 – by Syed Saleem Shahzad Paperback: 272 [...]
The Indian-Pakistani Divide: Why India Is Democratic and Pakistan Is Not – by Christophe Jaffrelot
An excellent article by the pen of Christophe Jaffrelot in which he unwinds the book of Philip Oldenburg. The book puts forth an extensive view of the political history of the sub-continent and in depth analysis the reason of a fragile democracy and a bleeding Pakistan.(Ali Raja) Since 1995, when the historian Ayesha Jalal's pathbreaking [...]
Book review: Hazrat Ali and Nahjal Balagha — by Khaled Ahmed
Justice and Remembrance: Introducing the Spirituality of Imam Ali By Reza Shah-Kazemi; IB Tauris 2006 Pp 254; Special price Rs995 Available at bookstores in Pakistan This is a book from The Institute of Ismaili Studies, London, and is dedicated to Syed Hossein Nasr, the great Iranian Twelver Shia scholar, indicating a coming together of [...]
Obama’s Wars: implications for Pakistan — by Dr Mohammad Taqi
We do not know if Bob Woodward had meant to time it this way, but his latest book, Obama’s Wars, has hit the shelves exactly 14 years after Kabul fell to the Taliban, with Pakistani ‘security advisers’ present as the marauding hordes tortured, killed and mutilated the dead body of the former Afghan president, Dr Najibullah and chased the [...]
Kashf-ul-Mahjoob (Unveiling the Veiled) – by Syed Ali Hajveri Data Ganj Bakhsh
Download English Translation by M. Ashraf Javed Revelation of Mystery 1 Revelation of Mystery 2 R. A. Nicholson’s 1911 translation can be downloaded from the following link: http://www.archive.org/details/kashfalmahjub00usmauoft Book Review Kashf Al-Mahjoob (کشف المحجوب) (Unveiling the Veiled) Author: Sayyad Ali bin [...]
George Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm’ – Book Review by Ali Salman
Animal Farm is undoubtedly one of the most famous books around. It has also been read by an incredible number of people, since it's publication in 1945, as evidenced by the fact that even those who have read very little tend to have read Animal Farm. Admittedly, this is partly because it has long been a staple book on the school curriculum, but it [...]
Jinnah: India-Partition-Independence – by Jaswant Singh – Book Review by Iftikhar Ahmad
Book review: Creation of the state of Pakistan —by Iftikhar Ahmad Jinnah: India-Partition-Independence By Jaswant Singh Oxford University Press; Pp 565, Price Rs 995 It is claimed that Jaswant Singh’s book, Jinnah: India-Partition-Independence, attempts an objective evaluation. It is for the impartial reader to pass a verdict. The focus [...]
Ideology of Pakistan – this is what we are teaching our kids.
Photo Comments from Ali K Chishti FB Profile Some selected Comments on this by Pakistani and Indian friends Vj Shiraz ; damn wth is ths :s Ideology is set of ideas not a science of ideas :s Rakshi Rath ; Funny how much this resembles the Saffron brigade's version of history and 'arguments' for Hindu rashtra. Louts are the same, [...]
The Al Qaeda Connection – by Imtiaz Gul
Chilling truths Book Review by Afrah Jamal The Al Qaeda Connection - By Imtiaz Gul, Penguin Global; Pp 320 Today, the landscape has been transformed into a hunting ground as the showdown between the military and militants gets underway and retaliatory strikes against the public intensify. While attempting to curb insurgency within its [...]
Hijacking from the Ground: The bizarre story of PK 805 – by Aminullah Chaudry
October 12, 1999: Pakistan Army takes control of Karachi's Quaid-e-Azam International Airport —Photo courtesy of www.historyofpia.com/forum High drama in the sky Reviewed by Muhammad Ali Siddiqi Source: Dawn, 07 Mar, 2010 Of the two principal characters involved in the nerve-racking drama on the evening of Oct 12, 1999, when the fate of [...]
My life with the Taliban – by Abdul Salam Zaeef
Humanising the monster Dr Mohammad Taqi My life with the Taliban By Abdul Salam Zaeef Translated from Pashto and edited by Alex Strick van Linschoten and Felix Kuehn Hurst/Columbia University Press; Pp 331 In his foreword to Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef’s book, Professor Barnett Rubin of New York University sets the stage for the launch, [...]
Muhammad: A Prophet for Our Time – by Karen Armstrong
Book Review Title: Muhammad - A Prophet for Our Time By: Karen Armstrong 249 pages. $21.95. HarperCollins/Atlas Books. Reviewed by Laurie Goodstein - in The New York Times (International Herald Tribune) The religion with the most adherents on the planet is Christianity, and few people would say they are unfamiliar with the story of its [...]
Tehzibi Nargasiat – by Mobarak Haider
Mobarak Haider Title: Tehzibi Nargasiat (Cultural Narcissism) Category: Psychology Publisher: Sanjh Publication Year of Publication: 2009 Price: Rs150 Here are some comments and reviews on an excellent, non-fiction book by Mobarak Haider. Ever wondered why a certain kind of Musalman is always whining? This book has all the [...]
Horr – by Dr Ali Shariati
"Horr" is a book by renowned Iranian scholar Dr Ali Shariati about the historic Battle of Karbala in which Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, and his 72 companions were martyred by the Caliph Yazid. Horr (also spelled as Hurr) was a commander of the army of Yazid during the battle. First involved in fighting Hussein, Horr [...]
Book Review: Punjabi Taliban
In the following article, Hamid Akhtar offers a review of Mujahid Hussain's book "Punjabi Taliban". The book reveals the linkages between the ISI, Sipah-e-Sahaba and certain pro-PML-N politicians and religious leaders in Punjab. The book also reveals how jihadi and sectarian elements present in different forms (e.g. Sipah-e-Sahaba, [...]
Book Review: Talibanisation of Pakistan – By Amir Mir
Talibanisation Of Pakistan: From 9/11 To 26/11 By Amir Mir Pentagon Press | 422 pages Introduction of the review by Abdul Nishapuri Amir Mir, unlike the pro-Taliban and pro-conspiracy theory tendencies of his brother Hamid Mir, has truly maintained the anti-establishment and anti-conservatory attitude and integrity of his legendary father, [...]
Book Review: Islam and the Secular State:
Is future of sharia with secularism? —by Khaled Ahmed Islam and the Secular State: Negotiating the Future of Sharia By Abdullah Ahmed an-Naim Harvard University Press 2008 Pp324; Price $35 The author links the concept of civic reason with the Quranic edict of shura or consultation even though it does not lay down any exact mechanism for [...]
Upset 2008: A book worthreading
A book written by Mehmood Sham. Mehmood Sham, a senior journalist who is very well known for very well balanced journalism, has written a book Upset 2008 in which he has covered some positive and negative aspects of Musharraf's leadership which are usually ignored by his opponents in politics and media. The book also exposes the reality of the [...]
Political Islam and Pakistan’s Intelligence Service
By ANDRE GEROLYMATOS Professor at Simon Fraser University and Chair of Hellenic Studies. The crisis in the Middle East has inadvertently overshadowed the greater crisis in South Asia where the conflict between Pakistan and India can easily (more...)
Pakistan: Fauj aur Mullaon kay Darmiyan – Book Review
When prime ministers bowed to jihad —by Khaled AhmedPakistan: Fauj aur Mullaon kay Darmiyan;By Hussain Haqqani;Translated into Urdu by Shafiqur Rehman Mian;Vanguard Books Lahore 2008;Pp308Shafiqur Rehman Mian has done a good job of translating a book that is full of terms not always easy to render in (more...)
Book Review: How We Missed the Story: Osama bin Laden, the Taliban, Sipah-e-Sahaba and the Hijacking of Afghanistan – Roy Gutman
BOOK REVIEW: Afghan war’s hidden blunders —by Khaled AhmedHow We Missed the Story: Osama bin Laden, the Taliban, and the Hijacking of AfghanistanBy Roy GutmanVanguard Books Lahore 2008 - Pp322 - Available at bookstores in PakistanThe book brings clarity to the Indo-Pak war number four (or five?) relocated to Afghanistan with India firmly [...]
Book Review: The True Face of Jehadis – By Amir Mir
The True Face of Jehadis; Inside Pakistan's Network of Terror Amir Mir Roli Books Private Ltd Pages xvii+ 308, Rs. 395 Review by: Kalim Bahadur Amir Mir's volume The True Face of Jehadis is a very comprehensive and a definitive handbook on the rise and growth of the militant Jehadi groups in Pakistan. Amir Mir traces the origins of the [...]
