A review by johndiconsiglio
No Good Men Among the Living: America, the Taliban, and the War Through Afghan Eyes by Anand Gopal

2.0

A noble attempt to chronicle the Afghanistan war from the Afghan perspective. Journalist Gopal is at his best telling the nation’s tragic story through 3 characters: a Taliban fighter, a US-allied warlord & an ordinary housewife. Less interesting are his 30,000-feet-above-the-Hindi-Kush observations. Refreshing to look through eyes other than American soldiers or Western reporters. There’s powerful, moving stuff here. But the histories & stories blur together. Disclaimer: I have war-writing fatigue. But, ultimately, one desert outpost & war-ravaged goat farm looks like another. Drags early, picks up.