A review by nferre
The Sewing Circles of Herat: A Personal Voyage Through Afghanistan by Christina Lamb

2.0

Let me preface this by saying that I read this in 2011 and I didn't read it cover to cover. The book was published in 2002 and would have been way better had I read it then. It's not a "readable" book, as it's packed with historic notes, dates, supplemental anecdotes and other bits that bog it down. In the first 150 pages or so, there is no mention whatsoever of any sewing circles, it was mostly background information on how the author got to be in Herat and her experience with the Mujaheddin to that point.

Most of the material has, since 2002, been hashed and rehashed. Many of the main characters have been killed in the war and have become relevant to the history, but not to what is happening now.

I felt that the book lacked thoughtful insight, personalization and was too broad. It touched on the horrors that the Afghan's have endured, but didn't follow up on them. She didn't make it personal imho.