Unexpected Afghans

Unexpected Afghans presents 29 innovative interpretations of a favorite at-home essential. From best-selling author Robyn Chachula comes an in-depth look into crocheting traditional afghans using contemporary techniques, colors and patterns. Expert designers including Kristin Omdahl, Kathy Merrick, Kimberly McAlindin, and many more, provide an abundance of fresh patterns and projects that are perfect for new and advanced crocheters as they start out beginner-friendly and become more complex, allowing a crocheter to build skills and confidence. Designers at any level will enjoy: • A detailed technique's workshop in every chapter including cables, motifs, color, lace, and Tunisian crochet. • Helpful tips from designers for working through each afghan project. • Easy-to-follow charts and diagrams. Along with tons of beautiful afghan projects for all skill levels, you'll find many of your favorite designer's biographies--giving you an exploration into their inspiration.

Unexpected Afghans presents 29 innovative interpretations of a favorite at-home essential. From best-selling author Robyn Chachula comes an in-depth look into crocheting traditional afghans using contemporary techniques, colors and patterns. Expert designers including Kristin Omdahl, Kathy Merrick, Kimberly McAlindin, and many more, provide an abundance of fresh patterns and projects that are perfect for new and advanced crocheters as they start out beginner-friendly and become more complex, allowing a crocheter to build skills and confidence. Designers at any level will enjoy: • A detailed technique's workshop in every chapter including cables, motifs, color, lace, and Tunisian crochet. • Helpful tips from designers for working through each afghan project. • Easy-to-follow charts and diagrams. Along with tons of beautiful afghan projects for all skill levels, you'll find many of your favorite designer's biographies--giving you an exploration into their inspiration.

Part historical evocation, part travelogue, and part personal quest, An Unexpected Light is the account of Elliot's journey through Afghanistan, a country considered off-limits to travelers for twenty years. Aware of the risks involved, but determined to explore what he could of the Afghan people and culture, Elliot leaves the relative security of Kabul. He travels by foot and on horseback, and hitches rides on trucks that eventually lead him into the snowbound mountains of the North toward Uzbekistan, the former battlefields of the Soviet army's "hidden war." Here the Afghan landscape kindles a recollection of the author's life ten years earlier, when he fought with the anti-Soviet mujaheddin resistance during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. Weaving different Afghan times and visits with revealing insights on matters ranging from antipersonnel mines to Sufism, Elliot has created a narrative mosaic of startling prose that captures perfectly the powerful allure of a seldom-glimpsed world. Jason Elliot's An Unexpected Light is a remarkable, poignant book about Afghanistan and a heartfelt reflection on the experience of travel itself.

"Aware of the risks involved, but determined to explore what he could of the Afghan people and culture, Elliot leaves the relative security of the capital, Kabul.

The bestselling author of ""A Whack on the Side of the Head"" now interprets the aphorisms of Heraclitus as springboards to creativity.

These awesome afghans will inspire you to pick up your hook and start right away! Choose from 40 projects, including a one-piece throw, a mile-a-minute wrap, and join-as-you-go squares, each designed by a reader of Crochet With Heart magazine.

As Ambassador and Special Envoy on Afghanistan from 1989 to 1992, Peter Tomsen has had close relationships with Afghan leaders and has dealt with senior Taliban, warlords, and religious leaders involved in the region's conflicts over the last two decades. Now Tomsen draws on a rich trove of never-before-published material to shed new light on the American involvement in the long and continuing Afghan war. This book offers a deeply informed perspective on how Afghanistan's history as a “shatter zone” for foreign invaders and its tribal society have shaped the modern Afghan narrative. It brings to life the appallingly misinformed secret operations by foreign intelligence agencies, including the Soviet NKVD and KGB, the Pakistani ISI, and the CIA. American policy makers, Tomsen argues, still do not understand Afghanistan; nor do they appreciate how the CIA's covert operations and the Pentagon's military strategy have strengthened extremism in the country. At this critical time, he shows how the U.S. and the coalition it leads can assist the region back to peace and stability.