Pamela Constable

Destellos de luz probablemente se convertirá en un clásico: en parte memoria personal de una periodista que firma sus crónicas desde los lugares más peligrosos del mundo, en parte historia política del sur de Asia en los inicios del siglo XXI, y en parte documental sobre viajes. El libro esta escrito con un extraordinario sentido evocador de los lugares y una gran intuicion de novelista. Peter Bergen, autor de Guerra santa S.A.: la red terrorista de Osama bin LadenEn su veneracion por muchas de las personas que ha conocido a los largo del camino lo que da su escritura su especial calidad evocadora. Pam Constable tambien ha elaborado un autorretrato conmovedor. Se trata de la odisea de una corresponsal en el extranjero que dirige su penetrante mirada no solo a los otros sino tambien a si misma. Anne Garrels, autora de Naked in BaghdadDurante cinco años, Pam Constable ha sido nuestra ventana abierta a los golpes de Estado, las revoluciones y los magnicidios que han desgarrado el sur de Asia... Este libro es una demostracion de arrojo que obliga al lector a pensar mas alla de los titulares para comprender mejor como nuestras vidas se ven afectadas por acontecimientos que ocurren en un mundo cada vez mas pequeño. Stephen P. Cohen, miembro de The Brookings Institution

A volatile nation at the heart of major cultural, political, and religious conflicts in the world today, Pakistan commands our attention. Yet more than six decades after the countrys founding as a Muslim democracy, it continues to struggle over its basic identity, alliances, and direction. In Playing with Fire, acclaimed journalist Pamela Constable peels back layers of contradiction and confusion to reveal the true face of modern Pakistan.In this richly reported and movingly written chronicle, Constable takes us on a panoramic tour of contemporary Pakistan, exploring the fears and frustrations, dreams and beliefs, that animate the lives of ordinary citizens in this nuclear-armed nation of 170 million. From the opulent, insular salons of the elite to the brick quarries where soot-covered workers sell their kidneys to get out of debt, this is a haunting portrait of a society riven by inequality and corruption, and increasingly divided by competing versions of Islam.Beneath the façade of democracy in Pakistan, Constable reveals the formidable hold of its business, bureaucratic, and military elitesincluding the countrys powerful spy agency, the ISI. This is a society where the majority of the population feels powerless, and radical Islamist groups stoke popular resentment to recruit shock troops for global jihad. Writing with an uncommon ear for the nuances of this conflicted culture, Constable explores the extent to which faith permeates every level of Pakistani societyand the ambivalence many Muslims feel about the role it should play in the life of the nation.Both an empathic and alarming look inside one of the worlds most violent and vexing countries, Playing with Fire is essential reading for anyone wishing to understand modern Pakistan and its momentous role on todays global stage.