One Kashmiri Journalist's Frontline Account of Life, Love, and War in His Homeland
by Basharat Peer
Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Feb 2010
240 pages
Genre: History, Current Affairs and Religion
Publication Information
Curfewed Night is a brave and unforgettable piece of literary reporting that reveals the personal stories behind one of the most brutal conflicts in modern times. Since 1989, when the separatist movement exploded, more than seventy thousand people have been killed in the battle between India and Pakistan over Kashmir. Born and raised in the war-torn region, Basharat Peer brings this little-known part of the world to life in haunting, vivid detail.
Peer tells stories from his youth and gives gut-wrenching accounts of the many Kashmiris he met years later as a reporter. He chronicles a young man's initiation into a Pakistani training camp, a mother forced to watch her son hold an exploding bomb by Indian troops, a poet finding religion when his entire family is killed. He writes about politicians living in refurbished torture chambers, idyllic villages rigged with land mines, and ancient Sufi shrines decimated in bomb blasts.
Curfewed Night is a tale of a man's love for his land, the pain of leaving home, and the joy of return -- as well as a fierce and moving piece of reportage from an intrepid young journalist.
"Peer tenderly addresses aspects of religion, military and family kinships, but the narrative feels too lightweight for the subject matter." - Kirkus Reviews
"A passionate and important book - a brave and brilliant report from a conflict the world has chosen to ignore." - Salman Rushdie
"The story of Kashmir has never been told before so evocatively and profoundly. Peer writes with the skill of a novelist, the insight of a journalist, and the evocative power of a poet." - Ahmed Rashid, author of Taliban and Descent into Chaos
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Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Basharat Peer was born in Kashmir in 1977. He studied political science at Aligarh Muslim University and journalism at Columbia University. He has worked as a reporter at Rediff and Tehelka and has written for various publications including the Guardian, Financial Times, New Statesman and Foreign Affairs where he was assistant editor. He is currently based in New York.
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