War In Afghanistan And The Art Of Honour

It's no secret that Afghanistan has probably been the one place in the world where there is always conflict within its borders and from without. Yet, no one, either within or without has been able to find a way to give the land peace. Steven Pressfield's The Afghan Campaign demonstrates this through the eyes of a young soldier joining the fight, while making it clear that this is a modern allegory.

Matthias follows in his brothers' footsteps and joins Alexander's army. When he arrives, he is told that he's unlikely to fight for very long, that likely it would all be over by the end of the season. Three years later, Alexander makes his way toward India, but leaves behind one third of his forces, most of whom are married to an Afghan woman, simply because he could not trust the peace of that land.

Written in the first person, we see Matthias struggling with notions of right and wrong, morality and justice. Mostly though, he struggles with honour and how it is perceived in vastly different ways by the Afghans, the military decision makers, philosophers, poets, authors and his mates. The author clearly shows how war changes the meanings of everything, by just about everyone.

I doubt anyone would disagree that war changes a person, full stop. But Pressfield is using Matthias to help explain to people with loved one in conflict, what goes on in the minds of a combatant and that each has a different point of no return. A moment where something so significant happens that the individual cannot see themselves going back to a life such as the one they had prior to war. It serves to help those not at war to understand just what it takes to make a person shut down emotionally and to some degree, intellectually.

Some might be a bit put off by some of the more modern sounding words and terms, but for those that aren't bothered by this so much, and who enjoy military fiction, I expect this might be a good fit. There is minimal swearing, and it's used to good effect - meaning, not gratuitous.

I would rate this book at more than 3 yaboos (out of 5) but I don't know if I'd go so far as to give it 3.5. As a reader of a lot of military fiction and non-fiction, little of this was new. So in that sense it was a really good story, but it didn't awe me. This is unlikely to be the experience of all readers.