The Great Game
Book description
THE GREATGAME: THE EPIC STORY BEHIND TODAY'S HEADLINES
Peter Hopkirk's spellbinding account of the great imperial struggle for supremacy in Central Asoa has been hailed as essential reading with that era's legacy playing itself out today.
The Great Game between Victorian Britain and Tsarist Russia was fought across desolate terrain…
Why read it?
3 authors picked The Great Game as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
This classic brings the secret world of spies and the struggle between countries for control of this vital corridor in the High Atlas within our reach.
Disguised as holy men or traders, they risked their all for information: many lost their lives in the process. Illustrating the strategic importance and difficulties of such a mountainous and complicated area, Hopkirk’s book is not only vivid and dramatic, it is still relevant to this turbulent area today.
From Amelia's list on the lives of those who pushed the boundaries.
This is one of the best popular history books describing the Great Game and is regularly referenced by later writers, including more serious works of history. Written in a truly engaging and exciting style by a former journalist turned accomplished author, it is also very thorough (562 pages) and covers the full historical spectrum as the game played itself out. It is a beautifully produced book with five hand-drawn maps and many illustrations and photographs.
From Riaz's list on the Great Game.
Filled with larger-than-life characters risking life and limb in the quest for empire, Hopkirk recounts the contest between Britain and Russia for influence in remote inner Asia in the 19th century. Appropriate derring-do abounds as spies and soldiers traverse steppe, mountains and desert in search of glory, only to become entrapped in the ultimate folly of imperial designs. Hopkirk’s sharp eye for the epic would make Kipling proud.
From Michael's list on Asian history.
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