This book has a number of things to recommend it. On one level it is a vivid travelogue of parts of the world most people have never visited - the Central Asian states, especially those surrounding the resource-rich Caspian Sea, as well as forays into Iran, China's Xinjiang province, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Few modern explorers have roamed such a vast swathe of disputed real estate. But it is Kleveman's analysis of the oil issue that underlie these blood-soaked territories that makes it such a worthwhile read. His talent for arranging last-minute interviews with a fascinating gallery of soldiers, monks, diplomats and rogues adds some brilliant pen portraits and the ring of...
