David Kilcullen’s The Accidental Guerilla: Fighting Small Wars in the Midst of a Big One is quite simply the best book I’ve read this year (and while it’s only the second one I’ve reviewed this year, I do read a lot of books without reviewing them…). According to Kilcullen it is, “perhaps too academic to be popular and too populist to be purely academic”—putting it in the same void as this blog. The book looks at the difference between the macro-conflict since 9/11 and previous wars. He provides an in-depth look at the strategies al-Qaeda has employed by doing the unthinkable—listening to what they say and reading what they write.
On to the cons. The brief section on East Timor seemed somewhat superfluous. I’m also not in love with the cover art. That’s all I’ve got.
In all seriousness, if you’re at all interested in Iraq, Afghanistan, al-Qaeda, or post-9/11 American foreign policy buy this book, or check it out from your local library. There’s no affiliate link there, I’m not trying to sell you this book for me, but because I think you’ll truly enjoy it.
