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The Finest Hotel in Kabul

byLyse Doucet

A People’s History of Afghanistan

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When the Inter-Continental Hotel opened in Kabul in 1969, it reflected the hopes of the country: a glistening white edifice that embodied Afghanistan's dreams of becoming an affluent, modern power.

Five decades later, and the Inter-Continental is a dilapidated, shrapnel-damaged shell. It has endured civil wars, terrorist attacks, the US occupation, and the rise, fall and rise of the Taliban. But its decaying grandeur still hints at ordinary Afghans' hopes of stability and prosperity.

Lyse Doucet, the BBC's Chief International Correspondent, has been staying at the Inter-Continental since 1988. She has spent decades meeting its staff and guests, and listening to their stories. And now, she uses their experiences to offer an evocative history of modern Afghanistan. It is the story of Hazrat, the octogenarian receptionist who for five decades has been witnessing diplomats and journalists, mujahideen and US soldiers, passing through the hotel's doors. It is the story of Abida, the first female chef to work in the Inter-Continental's famous kitchen after the fall of the Taliban in 2001. And it is the story of Sadeq, the 24-year-old front-desk worker who personifies the ambitions of a new generation of Afghans.

The result is a remarkably vivid account of how ordinary Afghans have experienced half a century of disorder. It captures the soul of Afghanistan from within the walls of the Kabul Inter-Continental.

An incredible book – vivid and beautifully written, it captures the soul of Afghanistan through an age of hopes and heartbreak, as well as one of constant change. A tender, wise and quietly devastating book.

PETER FRANKOPAN, author of THE SILK ROADS

About Lyse Doucet

Lyse Doucet first arrived at the Kabul Inter-Continental Hotel on Christmas Day 1988, the day after her thirtieth birthday. Visiting Afghanistan to cover the withdrawal of Soviet troops following their disastrous decade-long occupation, she was immediately taken by the faded grandeur of the hotel and the warm hospitality of its staff.

Over the course of the next four decades, Lyse would report on many of the most significant moments in world history – from the Arab Spring to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and many wars in the Middle East – ultimately becoming one of the world’s best-respected war correspondents and the Chief International Correspondent for the BBC. But through everything, she has always found herself drawn back to her Afghan home, the hotel most people just call the ‘Inter-Con’. Here, she draws upon years of conversations with its staff and guests to tell the story that only she can.
Details
  • Imprint: Penguin
  • ISBN: 9781529152562
  • Price: £14.00
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