Books like The ends of the earth by Robert D. Kaplan

In *The Ends of the Earth*, Robert D. Kaplan travels from the devastated countries of West Africa and the fundamentalist enclaves of Egypt and Iran to the culturally explosive lands of Central Asia, India, Pakistan, and Southeast Asia, armed only with a notebook and a backpack. He investigates how population explosion and environmental degradation affect each region, speaking to a wide range of people—from gun smugglers and warlords to shantytown residents and government officials. Kaplan finds that enduring cultural rivalries and the erosion of national boundaries, as regions redefine themselves along ethnic and historic lines, pose the most serious challenges in places as diverse as Sierra Leone, western China, and beyond. His ground‑level observations replace sweeping generalizations with intimate portraits of individuals like Khomeini’s loyal chauffeur Rafighdoost, the keeper of the Aswan High Dam Ali Abdel Razag, and a squatter on Ankara’s Golden Mountain, Ayshe Tanrikulu, who hopes her sons will become doctors or engineers. Through the everyday struggles and aspirations he encounters, Kaplan seeks the keys to a country’s future, offering a candid look at the destructive forces shaping our world today.

First publish date: 1996