I've quite enjoyed a lot of Pressfield, if less for the history but more for the plausibility, could the Greeks at thermolopaye have been like the Marine Corps? maybe? Were they? Probably not. The stories are good with a dash of Greek philosophy and the authors' writings on war, which are generally entertaining. This is a narrower focus than Gates of Fire, Virtues of War or the one about alicibiedes which I forget the name of. It focuses on one soldier, making it out just in time for the afghan campaign on Alexander the Great's conquests.

The book asks us to sympathize with the invaders as the Afghans brutalise the greeks, each other and especially their women. It seems to emphasis to the pointlessness of the campaign as to reach India Alexander only needed to secure as far as Kabul (AFAIK, happy to be corrected) but instead drives north "What do we seek? He gestures to the wasteland. "Have you trekked a thousand leagues to rob us of our poverty?""

Unhappy with having killed roughly half the male population between the ages of 12 and 90 (according to the text) and having laid waste to every village that could support their enemy to prevent him from getting into their rear again the Greeks cite examples of other genocides to finish the cause "Deport the population, man and boy, like Cyrus did in lonia and Nebuchadnezzar in Palestine. "Nothing less," says Demetrius, "will subdue this country." which may be trying to shw the horros of the butchers campaign, and hence Alexander's brilliance in using marriage to finish it where everyone thought of the murder of Roxanne. However without really understandign the objective in the first place (the ripped from the headlines part) its hard to see why this would be a victory.


Choice notes
A man keeps his purse in his pants, after every handshake he checks to make sure both sacks are there.

Horses are never permitted to herd on their own, even at rivers where they water. Otherwise
they'll revert to equine hierarchies and be worthless as cavalry.

I have a friend, Theodorus, in the logistical corps. This wedding, he says, will tax the supply arm like no operation of the entire war. Oxyartes, to honour his daughter, has brought every clan chief and malik from between Bactra City and the Oxus and all their retainers from six to eighty. The other warlords, not to be outdone (or left out in the new order), have summoned all their minions. Preceding the wedding will be Antar Greb, the Ten Days of Forgiveness. During this period prisoners will be pardoned, debts forgiven, feuds patched up. Tribal councils will be in session this night multitude and day adjudicating disputes. Tents alone, to house the throngs, will need a thousand camels just for transportation. The tally of mules is past calculation.

One thing Afghanistan does not lack is fish. Speckled and brown trout in tons are towed down from mountain streams by dhuttie pole-boatmen in ingenious wicker floats the fish still alive in the water.

Brutally realistic, this book delineates the problems of any war in Afghanistan, whether it is in Alexander's time or right now.

New Steven Pressfield addict. Gates of Fire was better, but the author never dissapoints.

Action/adventure, historical fiction, war, Alexander the Great, Adult
Oh my, how I love Pressfield's writing! How I wish children were taught such history and geography that I learn from his books! Most probably couldn't find Afghanistan on a labeled map. But I digress...
This was an amazing adventure, and very graphic. I referred often to the map on the end papers. Thank you! We can never be provided too many maps .
What a crazy war. And why?
The ending wasn't what I hoped for but it was realistic.

DNF

Prose as dry as Afghan riverbeds it describes. I understand it's written in journal format, but still...

When I saw the title The Afghan Campaign, my first thought was which Afghan Campaign - 2001-2014 or 1978-1989 or 1838-1842 or ... To paraphrase Monty Python, I didn't expect the Macedonian invasion.

Perhaps that is the main point of this book, that no matter how much things change in the rest of the world, things haven't changed much for fighting in Afghanistan.

This book follows the career of a young Macedonian recruit fighting as a dragoon in Alexander's Afghan campaign. It describes in detail the tactics, strategy, logistics and administration of Alexander's army as seen from a low level, as well as the recreation of the soldiers (drugs, alcohol and the local women). It ends with Alexander's face-saving exit.

Thrilling and wonderfully told, The Afghan Campaign recounts Alexander the Great's campaign in the Afghan kingdoms which began in the summer of 330 BC. This bloody and ruthless conflict is written from the perspective of a Macedonian recruit. The youngest of three brothers and eager to prove himself, Mathias has volunteered to join the leader he worships on his ambitious expedition into the unknown, unconquered country we now call Afghanistan.

I enjoy the way the writer puts forth his ideas and his use of language. For example... " You ask, my friend, how I can be a soldier and a poet? I answer: how can one be a soldier and not a poet?"
" I'm sorry for your girl, Matthias." I quote his proverb: Though blind, God sees; though deaf, He hears.

You would find it hard to put down the book once you start on it because not only does it take you through the war in Afghan but it gives you insight to the hopes and fears of men in battle and natures of wars past... and present.

Afghan 330 BC or Afghan 2004 AD?
You can feel the sweat drip down the neck of Matthais, the young warrior in Alexander's army, as awaits the attack.
His fear is physical - you can taste it, smell it.
Pressfield is a wonderful writer and I look forward to reading more of his books.

Another great book from Pressfield. Very well detailed with excellent side stories pertaining to Alexander. A+++++

4.5*'s.

It's somewhat amazing to think that Cyrus the Great, Darius of Persia, Alexander the Great, Genghis Khan, The Mughal Empire, The Sikh Empire, The British Empire, The Soviets and latest the Americans and Nato have all tried to tame this wild hard land.

This book deals with the time of Alexander. It's amazing the parallels between how the Afghan's fought a force both superior in manpower, conventional "advanced" war theory and technology to a standstill by knowing the terrain and using it against the enemy the same way they have in the most recent historical battles.

What this book offers is the rationale behind the Afghan mindset and how it's counterintuitive to all European based way of thinking. Not that I agree with that mindset but really it brings into the light how it still remains the same and how they are not going to change. The choice laid before the soldiers is genocide or withdrawal because as long as one member of a tribe survives there will always be a knife in the back.

Told through the eyes of a third son following his father and brothers into the "glory" of being a soldier this had the raw dessert warrior feel of Deadhouse Gates. Reading this Erikson definitely drew a lot of this campaign, as he did others, in telling that tale. The pure savagery on both sides taking on a barbaric level where nothing is out of bounds.

This is not a light tale. Nor does it have a happy ending. It is realistic, informative, brutal and in the end offers some uncompromising truths about war and trying to change the heart of a people.

rating: 3.5/5

I have mixed feelings about this novel, it doesn't compare to Pressfield's Gates of Fire: An Epic Novel of the Battle of Thermopylae but has some great moments, descriptions, and characters despite a major flaw that annoyed me to no end.

I'll start with what I loved, mainly Shinar. It is so rare that historical fiction with battles and warriors has such a realistic portrayal of women in history that are strong but still within their prescribed culture. Many times portrayals of women veer into fantasy warriors (which I love in fantasy but not historical fiction) or to the opposite, to that of women concerned only about marriage and babies (which bores me to death). Instead, we have Shinar whose life has been devastated by war and yet who remained strong and defiant in a culturally complicated world. I won't go into everything here since I don't want to spoil the plot but Shinar was by far my favorite character and probably the most complex as well (despite the story being told from Matthias' first person POV).

It was also interesting to see another side to Alexander the Great's campaigns, from the point of view of a common soldier. I was disappointed at first when I realized that there is actually very, very little Alexander in this book. But then realized that maybe it was a good thing. I have an image of Alexander painted with Renault's beautiful words and am afraid other interpretations would not live up to it. Here I didn't have to worry. There is one generic scene with Alexander but not long enough to get anything but a vague idea of the kind of general he was.

Despite its slow start, by midway of the novel Pressfield paints beautiful and horrific images of Alexander's soldiers' tribulations. The realities of moving such a huge army, and moving as swiftly as historical accounts indicate, are presented beautifully and in detail. I gained an admiration for his logistics officers. And the battle scenes were amazingly drawn as well.

However, there was one huge negative that didn't allow me to get lost inside this ancient world he created and it was the language he used. I am not saying that the soldiers back then didn't use slang, I am sure they did, but Pressfield's use of modern slang and terminology grated. Additionally, he also used words like dames for women which I associate more with the 1920s (plus, that specific word just pisses me off in general). I'm sure this contributed to my rough start with the novel. By midway, either less slang was used or I had gotten used to it because the language didn't bother me, as much. Regardless, it left me annoyed and despite the amazing story and characters I just couldn't help being thankful that it was over.

Gripping, full of action. It does indeed read like a soldier's journal.

What strikes me about this book is how little Afghanistan has changed. Even 2,300 years later, the same culture reigns. The same concepts of honor and face still dominate.

Afghanistan appears indomitable. It doesn't matter who tries to conquer or pacify it- whether it's the Russian Empire, the British Empire, the Soviet Union, the United States, or even (in my opinion the greatest military leader of all time) Alexander the Great. The insane terrain and weather, coupled with a culture that will not give an inch, make this place unconquerable.