West of Kabul, East of New York: An Afghan American Story

Anyone wanting a better understanding of Afghanistan and Islam will enjoy this book. The reader goes on this journey of understanding with the author, rather than being told from someone who knows.

The author writes in a very straighforward style. I can't decide whether this is an asset. Very good for high schoolers or those just starting college. Not quite so much so for adults.Basically shortly after the memoir begins , we see the author as a hippie college student-- a young adult living in San Francisco. His life is proliferated. Afghan Father, American Mother, upper class in Afghanistan, schooled in English as well as other languages, growing into his teen years in Afghanistan in a semi- cloistered environment. Then, he comes to live in America at age sixteen! Because he has one foot in Afghanistan and one in America, he feels conflcted, although he desperately wants to be an American kid.Factor in the 1960s ethos, the exaggerated hippie lifestyle in San Francisco at his time, the excellent but "do it yourself" college he attended. Then add his close extended family here and abroad and combine this with outside muslim pressures.The above is a recipe for his search to "find" himself. The book is about this journey-- rejecting extreme religiosity which is fomenting abroad, willingly losing his Afghan family (and roots) and coming to terms with this while achieving happiness, success and constructing a new family here as he matures.Some of the best parts of Ansary's story detail the complete honesty of his feelings toward his very close original family particularly his Father, who stayed in Afghanistan. He is unapologetic about his rejection of his place of birth, the obvious all-consuming religion and culture of worship. He ultimately embraces his American life wholeheartedly.This is powerful, simple in some ways, a quick read that reminds us that people are individuals first.

Moving and enlightening. Thank you for sharing your stories allowing us to bear witness to the exquisite complexities and simplicities contained within them.

An enjoyable and yet poignant account of growing up Afghan and American. Mr. Ansary's descriptions of living as a child within the US-sponsored Helmand Valley Authority capture the ambiguities of America's desire to help and remake the world, while the account of his adult travels in search of his Islamic heritage reveal how difficult (impossible?) it is to truly connect with a world that existed 1400 years ago. (Think about those individuals who believe we can somehow return to the "original" meanings of the Constitution.) I'm writing this from Afghanistan, where I regularly ask my Afghan friends about the correct way to pray, particularly the requirement (described in the book) to extend the little finger while the rest are closed. This question is always good for some laughs, and has led to the following observation from them: Look, life is tough in Afghanistan, and the individual may be a practicing Muslim who doesn't like Americans, but the reality is survival: no one cares about ideology or religion, it's whatever we have to do to live. That explained my question about the secret policemen who had entered service under the communists, supported the Russians, worked for the Taliban, and now served the Karzai regime. Afghanistan will somehow survive, not as an American clone but as itself. This book is a good introduction to comprehending this world. My only question (piqued by a recent article in the Washington Post) is whether (or how) he remained friends with his siblings: an older sister who embraced America and a younger brother who sought meaning in a fundamentalist version of Islam.

This book held my interest.

This book was an amazing memoir of what Tamim lived through. It's evocative, touching, and inspiring. If you are interested in reading about what life in Afghanistan used to be, this is the book to pick up. Tamim Ansary beautifully put together a book I couldn't stop reading. Ansary depicts the life of so many we know nothing of. I hope this book inspires others as it did too me. Don't judge a book by it's cover. Don't judge a country by the mistakes of others. Proud of you Tamim Ansary and I'm sure your ancestors are too.

The author's early years in Afghanistan were fascinating to read about. I have come away with a good understanding of growing up as a member of a clan. South Asia's view of family, tribe, and clan. Such different and also rich life.Then vagaries of history changing life for everyone there, from rule by kings then Soviets, and Taliban, then the American military, etc. The bad effects of do-folders, too.It's a lot for the reader to absorb, and sometimes it was too much and I would switch to reading a different book with a stronger narrative.

This is a portrait of the Ansary family or clan, by a man born in Afghanistan who then emigrated to America. He married an American woman but has always preserved his Afghan sense of self. An atheist, he is also savagely against the Taliban whom he compares to Nazis. The heart of this book, however, is personal and cultural - no religious or political diatribes.

This is mostly a memoir, but with some history of Afghanistan about which I knew little. It encouraged me to read this author's "Games Without Rules" a much longer, more detailed history of Afghanistan. His history of Islam is also excellent: Destiny Disrupted.