Afghan Campaign

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Looking at the front cover, one would think this might be about the U.S. Afghan adventure. It isn't. It is a story of Alexander the Great's Afghan campaign which ran from the Summer of 330 BC to the Spring of 327 BC. Even in those days, a war in Afghanistan was difficult to win. This story is told by a young soldier, Matthias, enlisted in Alexander's grand adventure to create an empire. He begins as a new recruit and three years later is a hardened, cynical veteran. Much of the stuff written about the current Afghan situation was true in 330 BC, horrible terrain and weather, a brutal and unforgiving foe, gratuitous bloodshed and slaughter, collateral damage, etc. The author pulls no punches when it comes to describing what both sides did to try and terrify the other side. It also is graphically accurate describing the transition from new recruit to killer. Many of the lessons Alexander learned might make sense to the current commanders fighting in Afghanistan today. One, being it is near impossible to win the hearts and minds of the native population when you are seen as an invader. Two, you cannot defeat a foe who cares little about his own life. Three, as long as the indigenous population is willing to feed and hide your foe, you will never be able to finish the enemy off. Another truth of combat that comes through clearly in the book is that soldiers do not fight for country, medals or riches but rather for their buddies. Often in the story, Matthias, the narrator, takes great risks for no other reason than to protect the members of his unit. Another warfare given is that the officers will do something stupid that the foot soldier pays for. Such an event leads to a massacre of one wing of Alexander's army. The story even contains a "Dear John" event. The big questions are never answered in this story such as why did Alexander spend so much time and resources to conquer Afghanistan when the actual goal was India? Why were were so many of Alexander's soldiers neither Macedonians or Greeks? These are left for the reader to puzzle out on his own just as Matthias and his buddies had to do. I did feel , though, that the author was reaching when he created a litany of slang such as he imagined the soldiers of the day used. Felt a little bit affected to me and an attempt to tie this story to the present day; not that I doubt that slang existed. Sometimes. Pressfield's descriptions went on far too long and gave me the impression he was trying to show how much research he had done. Other than these small criticisms, I enjoyed the book immensely and unreservedly recommend it.