In the Line of Fire: A Memoir
written by Priyan
at Saturday, December 20, 2008
Ebook Title: In the Line of Fire: A Memoir
Author: Pervez Musharraf
Publisher: Free Press (September 25, 2006)
Hardcover: 368 pages
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0743283449
ISBN-13: 978-0743283441
EBook Description
According to Time magazine, Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf holds "the world's most dangerous job." He has twice come within inches of assassination. His forces have caught more than 670 members of al Qaeda in the mountains and cities, yet many others remain at large and active, including Osama bin Laden and Ayman Al Zawahiri. Long locked in a deadly embrace with its nuclear neighbor India, Pakistan has come close to full-scale war on two occasions since it first exploded a nuclear bomb in 1998. As President Musharraf struggles for the security and political future of his nation, the stakes could not be higher for the world at large.
It is unprecedented for a sitting head of state to write a memoir as revelatory, detailed, and gripping as In the Line of Fire. Here, for the first time, readers can get a firsthand view of the war on terror in its central theater. President Musharraf details the manhunts for Osama and Zawahiri and their top lieutenants, complete with harrowing cat-and-mouse games, informants, interceptions, and bloody firefights. He tells the stories of the near-miss assassination attempts, not only against himself but against Shaukut Aziz (later elected prime minister) and one of his top army officers (later the vice chief of army staff), and of the abduction and beheading of Daniel Pearl -- as well as the forensic and shoe-leather investigations that uncovered the perpetrators. He details the army's mountain operations that have swept several valleys clean, and he talks about the areas of North Waziristan where al Qaeda is still operating.
Yet the war on terror is just one of the many headline-making subjects in In the Line of Fire. The full story of the events that brought President Musharraf to power in 1999 is told for the first time. He reveals new details of the 1999 confrontation with India in Kashmir (the Kargil conflict) and offers a proposal for resolving the Kashmir dispute.
He offers a portrait of Mullah Omar, with stories of Pakistan's attempts to negotiate with him. Concerning A. Q. Khan and his proliferation network, he explains what the government knew and when it knew it, and he reveals fascinating details of Khan's operations and the investigations into them.
In addition, President Musharraf takes many stances that will make news. He calls for the Muslim world to recognize Israel once a viable Palestinian state is created. He urges the repeal of Pakistan's 1979 Hudood law. He calls for the emancipation of women and for their full political equality with men. He tells the sad story of Pakistan's experience with democracy and what he has done to make it workable.
Ebook Review
In the Line of Fire is the most self-congratulatory, self-serving and arrogant books I've read in a long time, but what some people don't seem to grasp is that these reasons are what makes the book so entertaining to read. Of course the leader of a country that took power by military coup is going to produce a fictional auto-biography, but to complain about it so much misses the point. Know that you're getting a very specific version of the "truth" when you pick this book up, but at the sime time you're also getting a suspense filled page turner because you have no idea what he's going to say next.
Musharraf likens his own personal history to that of Pakistan's history as a nation, even going so far as to include commentary on the back cover that "the entire world depends upon him to succeed." While this a bit of a stretch to say the least, his story is entertaining. The complete random nature of much of the book can be frustrating for some, but it means never having to get bogged down in the details. The sections on his childhood are particularly entertaining, but the best part of the book by far is the story of how he came to power. According to Musharraf, he didn't come to power through a military coup. The Prime Minister in power in 1999 who was trying to get rid of Musharraf was the one responsible for the coup. Musharraf and the army carried out a "counter-coup" for the sake of the nation. Classic.
You may find yourself wondering why Musharraf wrote this book and who his intended audience was. This book was clearly meant for Americans. It wasn't written for his own country, and narcissism aside, for himself either. This book was written to convince Americans unsure of whether Musharraf is a "good guy" or "bad guy" that he is indeed on our side. He tries so hard to appear as America's friend in the book that it almost becomes painful at times. His desire to cultivate this image trumps the overal quality of the book because by the end, he's merely tacking on three or four page chapters on things like the emancipation of women or the "soft" image of Pakistan. The supreme irony here is that if enough of his opponents in Pakistan actually read this book, they might be able to muster enough support to overthrow Musharraf. This is the exact opposite image that he needs to present at home in order to stay in power.
Something else important to keep in mind is that Musharraf has the most unenviable job in the entire world. He has reactionary religious extremists at home that want to overthrow him on one hand, and the U.S. threatening to bomb Pakistan back to the stone age on the other. He's caught in a very tight spot with practically no room to maneuver. That he's been able to stay alive and in power for so long is truly remarkable. It's hard for me at least to be so critical of someone in that position. --By Lee L.
About the Author
Pervez Musharraf has been the president of Pakistan since 1999. As a 4-year old, he moved to Karachi upon the partition of India and creation of Pakistan, and his lifespan and career has been tied to the life of his country ever since. After attending Pakistan's military academy he became a commando in the elite Special Services Brigade, fighting in the wars with India in 1965 and 1971. He rose through the ranks to become General and Chief of Army Staff in 1998. He became president in a dramatic confrontation with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, and has remained in office despite two assassination attempts.
Download link
Publisher: Free Press (September 25, 2006)
Hardcover: 368 pages
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0743283449
ISBN-13: 978-0743283441
EBook Description
According to Time magazine, Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf holds "the world's most dangerous job." He has twice come within inches of assassination. His forces have caught more than 670 members of al Qaeda in the mountains and cities, yet many others remain at large and active, including Osama bin Laden and Ayman Al Zawahiri. Long locked in a deadly embrace with its nuclear neighbor India, Pakistan has come close to full-scale war on two occasions since it first exploded a nuclear bomb in 1998. As President Musharraf struggles for the security and political future of his nation, the stakes could not be higher for the world at large.
It is unprecedented for a sitting head of state to write a memoir as revelatory, detailed, and gripping as In the Line of Fire. Here, for the first time, readers can get a firsthand view of the war on terror in its central theater. President Musharraf details the manhunts for Osama and Zawahiri and their top lieutenants, complete with harrowing cat-and-mouse games, informants, interceptions, and bloody firefights. He tells the stories of the near-miss assassination attempts, not only against himself but against Shaukut Aziz (later elected prime minister) and one of his top army officers (later the vice chief of army staff), and of the abduction and beheading of Daniel Pearl -- as well as the forensic and shoe-leather investigations that uncovered the perpetrators. He details the army's mountain operations that have swept several valleys clean, and he talks about the areas of North Waziristan where al Qaeda is still operating.
Yet the war on terror is just one of the many headline-making subjects in In the Line of Fire. The full story of the events that brought President Musharraf to power in 1999 is told for the first time. He reveals new details of the 1999 confrontation with India in Kashmir (the Kargil conflict) and offers a proposal for resolving the Kashmir dispute.
He offers a portrait of Mullah Omar, with stories of Pakistan's attempts to negotiate with him. Concerning A. Q. Khan and his proliferation network, he explains what the government knew and when it knew it, and he reveals fascinating details of Khan's operations and the investigations into them.
In addition, President Musharraf takes many stances that will make news. He calls for the Muslim world to recognize Israel once a viable Palestinian state is created. He urges the repeal of Pakistan's 1979 Hudood law. He calls for the emancipation of women and for their full political equality with men. He tells the sad story of Pakistan's experience with democracy and what he has done to make it workable.
Ebook Review
In the Line of Fire is the most self-congratulatory, self-serving and arrogant books I've read in a long time, but what some people don't seem to grasp is that these reasons are what makes the book so entertaining to read. Of course the leader of a country that took power by military coup is going to produce a fictional auto-biography, but to complain about it so much misses the point. Know that you're getting a very specific version of the "truth" when you pick this book up, but at the sime time you're also getting a suspense filled page turner because you have no idea what he's going to say next.
Musharraf likens his own personal history to that of Pakistan's history as a nation, even going so far as to include commentary on the back cover that "the entire world depends upon him to succeed." While this a bit of a stretch to say the least, his story is entertaining. The complete random nature of much of the book can be frustrating for some, but it means never having to get bogged down in the details. The sections on his childhood are particularly entertaining, but the best part of the book by far is the story of how he came to power. According to Musharraf, he didn't come to power through a military coup. The Prime Minister in power in 1999 who was trying to get rid of Musharraf was the one responsible for the coup. Musharraf and the army carried out a "counter-coup" for the sake of the nation. Classic.
You may find yourself wondering why Musharraf wrote this book and who his intended audience was. This book was clearly meant for Americans. It wasn't written for his own country, and narcissism aside, for himself either. This book was written to convince Americans unsure of whether Musharraf is a "good guy" or "bad guy" that he is indeed on our side. He tries so hard to appear as America's friend in the book that it almost becomes painful at times. His desire to cultivate this image trumps the overal quality of the book because by the end, he's merely tacking on three or four page chapters on things like the emancipation of women or the "soft" image of Pakistan. The supreme irony here is that if enough of his opponents in Pakistan actually read this book, they might be able to muster enough support to overthrow Musharraf. This is the exact opposite image that he needs to present at home in order to stay in power.
Something else important to keep in mind is that Musharraf has the most unenviable job in the entire world. He has reactionary religious extremists at home that want to overthrow him on one hand, and the U.S. threatening to bomb Pakistan back to the stone age on the other. He's caught in a very tight spot with practically no room to maneuver. That he's been able to stay alive and in power for so long is truly remarkable. It's hard for me at least to be so critical of someone in that position. --By Lee L.
About the Author
Pervez Musharraf has been the president of Pakistan since 1999. As a 4-year old, he moved to Karachi upon the partition of India and creation of Pakistan, and his lifespan and career has been tied to the life of his country ever since. After attending Pakistan's military academy he became a commando in the elite Special Services Brigade, fighting in the wars with India in 1965 and 1971. He rose through the ranks to become General and Chief of Army Staff in 1998. He became president in a dramatic confrontation with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, and has remained in office despite two assassination attempts.
Download link
