2008-05-02 The missing link?

I enjoyed the book, for Stewart's eye to detail and his ability to convey so well the challenges facing the people of Afghanistan. As someone who has worked occasionally in Afghanistan (and with much less insight than Stewart), I felt that he really captured the realities of Afghanistan in 2002 and it made me wonder how much the same region has changed today, if at all. Stewart has an impressive knowledge of Islamic history and culture and uses it well to provide understanding of the people and the book is worth reading just for that.

Other reviewers have commented on his prose, and it has a simpleness to it, but lacks real depth, it has a repetitive quality, not unlike the steps he took on his journey. The missing link is his reason for the journey. Of course there doesn't have to be reason, but compared to many other travel writers his lack of sharing about who he is, why he does what he does, means the prose takes you along as if watching a travel documentary, rather than making you feel as if you are there experiencing every step.