Another book I’ve read about the region that is not well known and understood. Some people may know this country as a former USSR republic, some people may associate this country with Aral Sea or the Silk Road. This book shows Uzbekistan from a few perspectives - social, political and cultural. Of course - the book is too short to cover all these topics but usually this is a good point to further expand your knowledge.
What I like the most about this book is a that the author spent few years in Uzbekistan. It’s not just a memories gathered from a trip to this central Asia country. We will learn how the political system there works, how the (still) authoritarian government spies on citizens and how certain spheres of public life are controlled. Despite this, the country has made significant progress in many areas (opening up to tourism, foreign investment, loosening of the political system).
The last chapter is a more personal part. This shows what might happen if your journalistic work touch on sensitive parts of the political system in the country. Unfortunately, it’s still dangerous to be objective journalist, especially working in a state with flawed democracy standards.