‘In a Nutshell’, the new 1-CD audiobook series from Naxos AudioBooks, continues with a fascinating history of Afghanistan. For centuries it has been the playground of big powers, from Alexander the Great to the British Empire and the Soviet Union. It has been torn by internal strife and ideological differences, yet Afghans, tribal though they may be, remain a proud nation. Here is a short history, setting the background to the current situation.

Afghanistan has been a tinderbox for centuries. A major crossroads between East and West, it has seen many armies invade with impunity its rough and varied terrain from Alexander the Greats in the 4th century BC to the Soviet and Nato forces of our own time. This clear introduction covers Islam, the Pashtun majority, the constant internercine strife, the powerful leaders all from an historical perspective, which helps to explain the countrys current position as one of the most dangerous o...

Cool Runnings meets Joseph O'Neill's Netherland in an inspiring and feel-good story of bravery and sporting success from a country so widely known for war and extremism. This is the true story of the Afghanistan cricket team and their extraordinary attempt to join the world's elite cricketing nations. That this devastated nation should be able to field a cricket team at all, let alone one as successful as this, is an unbelievable achievement. Seven years ago, in a country...

An unforgettable novel about finding a lost piece of yourself in someone else.Khaled Hosseini, the #1 New York Times–bestselling author of The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns, has written a new novel about how we love, how we take care of one another, and how the choices we make resonate through generations. In this tale revolving around not just parents and children but brothers and sisters, cousins and caretakers, Hosseini expl...

The inspiring true story of David Nyuol Vincent, a Sudanese refugee who survived famine, wars and 17 years in refugee camps to build a new life in Australia.David Nyuol Vincent was a little boy when he fled southern Sudan with his father, as war raged in their country. He left behind his distraught mother and sisters, his village and his childhood.For months David and his father walked across southern Sudan, barefoot, desperately searching for safety, food ...

The definitive biography of Imran Khan, the former Pakistan cricket captain and all-rounder – the Oxbridge graduate and vociferous campaigner; the devout Muslim whose kaleidoscopic social life flooded the gossip columns; the man who raised $60 million for cancer research and who is now one of the most important political figures in Pakistan.On one thing, Imran Khan’s friends and enemies agree: it all began with the leopard print satin trousers. In November 1974, the Cricketer Inter...

The heart-rending story of a child 'Tampa' refugee who grew up to become a Fulbright scholar, highlighting the plight and potential of refugees everywhere.When the Taliban were at the height of their power in 2001, Abbas Nazari's parents were faced with a choice: stay and face persecution in their homeland, or seek security for their young children elsewhere.The family's desperate search for safety took them on a harrowing journey from the mountain...

A frank and honest memoir by Britain’s former ambassador to Kabul which provides a unique, high-level insight into Western policy in Afghanistan.The West’s mission in Afghanistan has never been far from the headlines. For Sherard Cowper-Coles, our former Ambassador, Britain’s role in the conflict – the vast amount of money being spent and the huge number of lives being lost – was an everyday reality.In Cables from Kabul, Cowper-Coles takes the reader on a journey through th...

Oman is one of the world’s most secretive countries,ruled with absolute authority by the Sultan. All information is strictly controlled by the State: British Prime Minister Edward Heath once said that the story of the 1970 Palace Coup and the events that followed would ‘not be told in our lifetime’.Following ten years’ residency in the country a senior member of Sultan Qaboos's Family suggested that John Beasant write a political history of Oman that would to some extent rehabilita...

SHORTLISTED FOR THE ORWELL PRIZE 2014 AND THE PADDY POWER POLITICAL BOOK AWARDS INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS BOOK OF THE YEAR.Award-winning journalist James Fergusson is among the few to have witnessed at first hand the devastating reality of life in the failed and desperate state of Somalia.This corner of the world has long been seen as the rotting and charred heart of Africa: a melting pot of crime, corruption, poverty, famine and civil war. And in recent years,...

A compelling examination of football club ownership in the era of the super-richOnce upon a time football was run by modest local businessmen. Today it is the plaything of billionaire oligarchs, staggeringly wealthy from oil and gas, from royalty, or from murkier sources. But who are these new masters of the universe? Where did all their money come from? And what do they want with our beautiful game?While almost cloaked in secrecy, the billionaire owner has...

In January 2011 millions of Egyptians took part in mass protests that ended the iron rule of its military dictator, Hosni Mubarak. Across the Middle East, from Algeria to Yemen, millions took to the streets, overthrowing despotic and violent regimes that had clung onto power for generations. Meanwhile, on the football pitch, a different sort of revolution was taking place. The wealthy Gulf-based owners of Manchester City plotted the club's dominance of English football while Qatar celebrat...