No Good Men Among the Living

Anand Gopal

PULITZER PRIZE FINALISTNATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALISTWINNER OF THE RIDENHOUR PRIZE Anand Gopal's No Good Men Among the Living stunningly lays bare the workings of America's longest war and the truth behind its prolonged agony. "Essential reading for anyone concerned about how America got Afghanistan so wrong. A devastating, well-honed prosecution detailing how our government bungled the initial salvo in the so-called war on terror, ignored attempts by top Taliban leaders to surrender, trusted the wrong people, and backed a feckless and corrupt Afghan regime . . . It is ultimately the most compelling account I've read of how Afghans themselves see the war." --The New York Times Book ReviewIn a breathtaking chronicle, acclaimed journalist Anand Gopal traces the lives of three Afghans caught in America's war on terror. He follows a Taliban commander, who rises from scrawny teenager to leading insurgent; a U.S.-backed warlord, who uses the American military to gain wealth and power; and a village housewife trapped between the two sides, who discovers the devastating cost of neutrality. Through their dramatic stories emerges a stunning tale of how the United States had triumph in sight in Afghanistan-and then brought the Taliban back from the dead.

Prologue 1 PART ONE?1. The Last Days of Vice and Virtue 5?2. The Battle for Tirin Kot 28?3 The War from Year Zero 50?4. The Sewing Center of Khas Uruzgan 73PART TWO?5. No One Is Safe from This 101?6. To Make the Bad Things Good Again 118?7. Black Holes 132PART THREE?8. Election Day 151?9. The Far End of the Bazaar 169PART FOUR?10. Back to Work 183?11. The Tangi 199?12. No-Man's-Land 215PART FIVE?13. Stepping Out 239?14. The Leader 251Epilogue 268?A Note on Sources 277?Notes 279?Acknowledgments 291?Index 295