From Publishers Weekly

Lieven (Chechnya), who has reported on Pakistan off and on for 20 years, offers a compelling argument for reorienting Western interests (and investments) in its wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Given its enormous population (six times that of Afghanistan), the key role Pakistani intelligence plays in Western efforts against terrorism, the strong ties between Pakistan and Western countries (especially Britain), and the fact that Pakistan's army is one of Asia's strongest (complete with nuclear weapons), Lieven writes, ""Pakistan is quite simply far more important to the region, the West and the world than is Afghanistan: a statement which is a matter not of sentiment but of mathematics."" His extensive history and cartography of the country comes equipped with solid policy prescriptionsÔÇöfor drone attacks to be ceased and for the U.S. to acknowledge how powerfully the bungled invasion of Afghanistan contributed to instability in the regionÔÇöand particularly the growth of the Taliban. Though his language can occasionally be patronizing, Lieven's writing is generally excellent. He wrestles huge amounts of material into a coherent whole, cogently explaining the intricate and interconnected roles played by kinship, regional allegiances, religion, and the military, shedding light on the country ""in all its complex patchwork of light and shadow."" (Apr.)
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Review

Kirkus, February 15, 2011
ÔÇ£Lieven breaks down his study by specific region; considers the structures of justice, religion, the military and politics in turn; and, finally, in a skillful, insightful synthesis, addresses the history of and issues concerning the Taliban, both Pakistani and Afghani. A well-reasoned, welcome resource for Western ""experts"" and lay readers alike.ÔÇØ

Edward Luce
ÔÇ£Everybody nowadays seems to take a view on Pakistan. Very few know what they're talking about. Anatol Lieven is that rare observer - a scholar who writes like the best kind of foreign correspondent about a country that he takes and measures on its own terms. Pakistan, a Hard Country offers an intimate and compellingly relevant portrait of an increasingly pivotal nation to the future of the world, for better or for worse. It fills a large gap in our understanding.ÔÇØ

Huffington Post, April 3, 2011

ÔÇ£Over the last decade, Lieven has been one of the smartest and most fair-minded commentators on the global situation, and in this important, very timely book, he explains the regions, classes, history, and prospects of Pakistan with equal value for both the neophyte and the expert. Based on Lieven's first-hand knowledge of the country for the past 20 years.ÔÇØ

Economist, April 7, 2011
*""Yet for drama, colour and complexity, [Pakistan] is hard to beat; and Anatol Lieven captures the richness of the place wonderfully. His book has the virtues of both journalism and scholarship...""

Foreign PolicyÔÇÖs The AfPak Channel blog, April 11, 2011
The release of Anatol Lieven's latest book, Pakistan: A Hard Country, could not be timelier. This insightful, comprehensive portrait of Pakistan is the perfect antidote to stereotypical descriptions of the country as the most dangerous place in the world Pakistan: A Hard Country has the power to dampen the paranoia about Pakistan's security complex, put terrorism in perspective, and humanize Pakistanis.

Foreign Affairs, May/June 2011

ÔÇ£Challenging the notion that Pakistan is fragile, Lieven presents in exquisite detail how things actually work, for better or for worse, in that ÔÇÿhard country.ÔÇÖÔÇØ

Evening Standard, April 21, 2011
*The gulf betweenthe multiple realities most Pakistanis know - and how outsiders perceive their country is wide and deep. Lieven's book is an ambitious and much-needed attempt to bridge it. The most striking thing about the book is its informed and consistently sensible tone. This tone is not heard much in discussions about Pakistan, and it is refreshing. Lieven writes in an affable, conversational voice, but not a casual one. His observations are precise and judicious.

Financial Times, April 22, 2011

Pakistan, as Anatol Lieven explains in this thorough analysis of the internal sources of this resilience, will not disintegrate easilyHe deftly tackles the misperception in the west that Islamist groups might easily sweep through Pakistan.

The Nation, April 13, 2011

ÔÇ£This book could hardly be timelier. Lucid and well informed, he deals carefully with PakistanÔÇÖs well-known problems. He raises hope, avoiding the hysteria and partial judgment that disfigure much contemporary writing on the subject. Above all, he emanates a deep affection bordering on love for the unfortunate, beleaguered, magical Pakistan.ÔÇØ

The New Republic, May 5, 2011
ÔÇ£his book may be described as the most informed Gazetteer on contemporary Pakistan. Instead of the too often repeated narrative of PakistanÔÇÖs history and ills, he offers a broader sweep into the condition of the provinces, the climate, the political parties and their personalitiesÔÇöand, in his best chapter, an important discussion of how todayÔÇÖs Taliban represent a continuation of similar uprisings a century ago.

Dallas Morning News, May 9, 2011
ÔÇ£Since the death of Osama bin Laden┬áin Pakistan last week, itÔÇÖs become increasingly clear that anyone hoping to follow international affairs should perhaps have begun watching that country some time ago. Fortunately, Pakistan: A Hard Country serves as an outstanding primer ÔÇö even reading just the introduction is supremely usefulÔǪ Lieven crafts a lucid and thoroughly fascinating whole from a wealth of informationÔǪ LievenÔÇÖs writing is excellent, especially crucial in a book tackling a topic with which many readers are entirely unfamiliar. Moreover, he clearly loves the place and its people. Pakistan: A Hard Country is the work of one of those rare writers able to see his subject in all its complexity, without either turning away or becoming a partisan of one perspective or the other.ÔÇØ

IBN Live, May 19, 2011
ÔÇ£If I had to review the book 'Pakistan: A Hard Country' in one line I would say it is brilliant. The book is well researched, informative, insightful, but most of all for a country that finds itself often in headline news for the wrong reasons, empathetic.ÔÇØ

The Age, May 20, 2011

ÔÇ£In his fine new book Pakistan. A Hard Country, Lieven argues that while the state is weak, Pakistani society is immensely strong.ÔÇØ

New Statesman, May 12, 2011

ÔÇ£does much to counter lazy assumptions about the country that proliferate elsewhere""

The Spectator, May 13, 2011

ÔÇ£His analysis of networks and systems is precise; his accounts of his travels illuminating as well as entertaining.ÔÇØ

The Guardian, May 1, 2011

Lieven's Pakistan: A Hard Country is one such blow for clarity and sobriety Lieven overturns many prejudices, and gives general readers plenty of fresh concepts with which to think about a routinely misrepresented country.

The Independent, May 5, 2011
ÔÇ£Lieven's feat lies in his remarkable, flesh-and-blood portrait of the nation, ranging across demographic swathes and including a chorus of voices from farmers to intelligence officers. The picture is one of a semi-anarchic nation mired in police savagery, institutional corruption, population bulges, water shortages and the risk of catastrophic environmental disaster following last year's floods.ÔÇØ

The New York Times Book Review, June 26, 2011

Ambitiousa sweeping and insightful narrative.

Newsline Magazine, June, 2011

ÔÇ£Pakistan: A Hard Country manages to be clear-headed and realistic, a welcome respite from the scare-mongering that taints so many western accounts of Pakistan.ÔÇØ

The Organiser (India), June 26, 2011

ÔÇ£This book is about the best that has been published in recent times about Pakistan.ÔÇØ

MoneyLife (India), June 18, 2011
ÔÇ£Pakistan-A Hard Country is one of the most detailed accounts of a country which often seems like it is held together by chewing gum (or willpower, if you like)ÔÇöbut what still makes it tick? Anatol Lieven knows, and it shows in this work.ÔÇØ

Wall Street Journal, June 27, 2011

[Lieven] brings an infectious enthusiasm to his task of summarizing the workings of the world's sixth most populous country. In this quest, he ranges effortlessly from a police station in Peshawar to a politician's mansion in the Punjab to the mean streets of Karachi. He dishes up pithy observations while delving deep into the nation's history, politics, culture and institutions Mr. Lieven's eye for detail, command of subcontinental history and old-fashioned shoe-leather reporting make this in many ways an excellent primer on Pakistan.

The Nation, July 18, 2011  

Lieven has written a sensible and thorough exploration of Pakistans political sphere Pakistan is a l