The Afghan [ Download ]
by Frederick Forsyth
[ Download ]
One could repackage Frederick Forsyth's entire body of work and reissue it under the title "The Way The World Works." His first novel, THE DAY OF THE JACKAL, brought a (probably) fictitious event
into the real world, and he has continued to do so for the over 30 years since his writing career began. In addition to getting older, he has gotten better, as evidenced by his latest offering, THE AFGHAN.
Forsyth continues to write of the people to whom George Orwell referred when he wrote "(w)e sleep safe in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm." The harm here is part of the mystery that propels THE AFGHAN. Specifically, a major terrorist plot is in the process of being planned and executed by Islamic extremists. British and U.S. intelligence have no idea what it is; all they know is that something is in the works. The nature of the plot remains a tantalizing puzzle for the reader until almost the very end. From the standpoint of the British and American governments, there is
more concern that the plot be prevented than in actually identifying it.
THE AFGHAN hangs its hat on a somewhat improbable premise --- the substitution of a legendary, revered Afghani terrorist with a retired, highly decorated British operative. Forsyth takes this plot line and makes it plausible thanks to his minute attention to detail and interjecting his characters into the real world playing
field of the War on Terror. The capable SAS agent, Michael Martin, is living out his retirement by restoring a farmhouse outside of a rural English village. Izmat Khan, the Afghani terrorist, is languishing in isolation in a Gitmo prison cell. Forsyth goes to great lengths to introduce both men to the readers --- as it develops, they already know each other --- and to supply deep background in their respective pasts. So while THE AFGHAN is plot-driven, it doesn't leave the characters behind.
Forsyth goes into an extensive review of real world events during the course of his narrative, so that at points the book becomes less a work of fiction and more a real-world historical treatise. His grasp of the topic is strong and firm, and is not a three-second connection of dots from which he draws erroneous conclusions. If you're accustomed to getting your world news and analysis from the current crop of journalists who populate the major networks, prepare to have your eyes opened by Forsyth's unvarnished account of the events that have led to today's troubles. And, as in the real world, errors are made, lives are lost and plans go awry. Meanwhile, Martin finds himself walking a dangerous tightrope, committed to immersing himself in a role in which he must rely wholly upon his own wits and resources, even as the unknown plot moves inexorably toward success.
Forsyth has long been a master of edge-of-the-seat writing, and while his early narrative in THE AFGHAN occasionally drifts into the merely interesting, the last half of the work is an all-out race, particularly with respect to the final hundred pages. Forsyth's familiarity with his subject matter additionally lends immediacy to the proceedings, resulting in yet another winner. Recommended.
[ Download ]
Forsyth continues to write of the people to whom George Orwell referred when he wrote "(w)e sleep safe in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm." The harm here is part of the mystery that propels THE AFGHAN. Specifically, a major terrorist plot is in the process of being planned and executed by Islamic extremists. British and U.S. intelligence have no idea what it is; all they know is that something is in the works. The nature of the plot remains a tantalizing puzzle for the reader until almost the very end. From the standpoint of the British and American governments, there is
more concern that the plot be prevented than in actually identifying it.
THE AFGHAN hangs its hat on a somewhat improbable premise --- the substitution of a legendary, revered Afghani terrorist with a retired, highly decorated British operative. Forsyth takes this plot line and makes it plausible thanks to his minute attention to detail and interjecting his characters into the real world playing
field of the War on Terror. The capable SAS agent, Michael Martin, is living out his retirement by restoring a farmhouse outside of a rural English village. Izmat Khan, the Afghani terrorist, is languishing in isolation in a Gitmo prison cell. Forsyth goes to great lengths to introduce both men to the readers --- as it develops, they already know each other --- and to supply deep background in their respective pasts. So while THE AFGHAN is plot-driven, it doesn't leave the characters behind.
Forsyth goes into an extensive review of real world events during the course of his narrative, so that at points the book becomes less a work of fiction and more a real-world historical treatise. His grasp of the topic is strong and firm, and is not a three-second connection of dots from which he draws erroneous conclusions. If you're accustomed to getting your world news and analysis from the current crop of journalists who populate the major networks, prepare to have your eyes opened by Forsyth's unvarnished account of the events that have led to today's troubles. And, as in the real world, errors are made, lives are lost and plans go awry. Meanwhile, Martin finds himself walking a dangerous tightrope, committed to immersing himself in a role in which he must rely wholly upon his own wits and resources, even as the unknown plot moves inexorably toward success.
Forsyth has long been a master of edge-of-the-seat writing, and while his early narrative in THE AFGHAN occasionally drifts into the merely interesting, the last half of the work is an all-out race, particularly with respect to the final hundred pages. Forsyth's familiarity with his subject matter additionally lends immediacy to the proceedings, resulting in yet another winner. Recommended.
[ Download ]
Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub on December 22, 2010
