The Dust of Empire: The Race for Mastery in the Asian Heartland

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Summary: Learn About Central Asia
Review: Central Asia has always held our fascination: who, having heard of it, doesn't want to travel the Golden Road to Samarkand?

Central Asia has also always been fearsome ... from Timur to Ali Babba and now to Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussein and the Ayatolla Khomeini.

But who in America knows with certainty that Samarkand is in Uzbekistan? Or even where the Caspian Sea is, or what countries border it?

Rudyard Kipling whetted our appetite with Kim (worth re-reading, by the way) and Peter Hopkirk led us by the hand through the days of the Great Game between Russia and England.

But now, we - the United States of America directly and all the world indirectly to one extent or another - are painfully and uneasily involved in Central Asia; and we are unlikely to extricate ourselves soon, and our children who are of an age to enlist are very much at risk. To say nothing of the hole in the middle of Downtown New York City.

But who knows anything about this Golden Road and this Golden Horde? Karl Meyer does, and he makes learning about these places and these people interesting reading. America, particularly, with its focus solely on the present, needs to be reminded that not only have these people been there a long time but also that America has long been involved without most of us even realizing it.

As The Ugly American of decades ago reminded us then that we have a responsibility and a duty to know something of the world we so much influence, The Dust of Empire does for today. It bears reading twice since it takes at least that to fix in our minds where and what Kyrgyzstan is.

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Summary: A delight to read!
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was informative and interesting all at the same time. Well written with the author's own style. Every author has their own way of conveying what they want to say, I think Karl did a good job with bringing his thoughts and ideas across in this book.

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Summary: Interesting and well-written
Review: In this short, readable book (in part an update of Tournament of Shadows), Meyer first provides some background on imperial competition among the British, the Russians, and the Americans in Southwest and Central Asia. Subsequent chapters describe recent history in Iran, Afghanistan, the Caucasus, and the Central Asian republics that once were part of the Soviet Union. Meyer's writing is clear, lively, and well-informed; events are placed in context, and are illuminated with sharply observed detail. While the discussion of issues is relatively light, this is an eye-opening introduction for those not already knowledgeable about the region.

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Summary: A Bit Unfocused but Fascinating Nonetheless
Review: Meyer's thesis seems to be that US dominance of sovereign countries is a bad thing. Using historical examples of American, British, and Russian imperialism, he makes this point well. But he never really explains why the Central Asian republics are at special risk for this kind of imperialism. The book seems on one hand to be about the risks of imperialism in general, and on the other hand a summary of recent Central Asian history.

I would have preferred two separate books--one on the dangers of imperialism, and one on the history and future of Central Asia. (The book may have been a bit rushed and its thesis may have been redirected by recent events) But nonetheless, the chapters are on their own all very interesting, and Meyer has a lot of insight about the situation.

But despite the structural flaws, I recommend this book highly to anyone interested in foreign policy or in recent Middle Eastern/Central Asian history.

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Summary: A breezy introduction that sometimes drifts off course
Review: Nonspecialists who seek a light-reading introduction to the rather loosely defined region - which Meyer refers to (fairly enough) as the "Asian Heartland" - taking in the Caucasus, former-Soviet Central Asia, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran can enjoy this book. Even nonspecialists can be disappointed, however, with the book's brevity and the author's tendency to meander about. The potential reader should be aware that Iraq, Turkey and Syria are specifically not covered in this book.

Considering that the book contains barely 200 pages of actual reading material, I found it tedious to plod through the first chapter, which is a rather general discussion of American and British imperialisms. It is not that this was difficult reading, but the pages were slipping away and I was eager to get to the main course. Even the second chapter (of just eight in total), which is about Russia and at least brings us finally to the continent in question, is slow to focus in on the main subject.

To the extent that Meyer actually describes the countries in the Asian heartland, the book provides a good introduction. But this is only an introduction. Hopefully, this will be enough to stimulate one to look to the bibliography or the shelf of one's local library or book store to read further.

Meyer is a good writer and knows the region. I just wish he had written more about these lands and digressed less on the likes, for example, of American television viewing habits, the 2000 presidential election, Leninism and 19th century European imperialism in Africa. This is a book to borrow, rather than a keeper to add to your bookshelf.

(I would give it 3-1/2 stars if that were possible. Because I think some readers will be a bit disappointed that the book isn't more solid, I feel that I have to round downward rather than upward.)

Rating:
Summary: A breezy introduction that sometimes drifts off course
Review: Nonspecialists who seek a light-reading introduction to the rather loosely defined region - which Meyer refers to (fairly enough) as the "Asian Heartland" - taking in the Caucasus, former-Soviet Central Asia, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran can enjoy this book. Even nonspecialists can be disappointed, however, with the book's brevity and the author's tendency to meander about. The potential reader should be aware that Iraq, Turkey and Syria are specifically not covered in this book.

Considering that the book contains barely 200 pages of actual reading material, I found it tedious to plod through the first chapter, which is a rather general discussion of American and British imperialisms. It is not that this was difficult reading, but the pages were slipping away and I was eager to get to the main course. Even the second chapter (of just eight in total), which is about Russia and at least brings us finally to the continent in question, is slow to focus in on the main subject.

To the extent that Meyer actually describes the countries in the Asian heartland, the book provides a good introduction. But this is only an introduction. Hopefully, this will be enough to stimulate one to look to the bibliography or the shelf of one's local library or book store to read further.

Meyer is a good writer and knows the region. I just wish he had written more about these lands and digressed less on the likes, for example, of American television viewing habits, the 2000 presidential election, Leninism and 19th century European imperialism in Africa. This is a book to borrow, rather than a keeper to add to your bookshelf.

(I would give it 3-1/2 stars if that were possible. Because I think some readers will be a bit disappointed that the book isn't more solid, I feel that I have to round downward rather than upward.)