An Unexpected Light, Travels in Afghanistan is widely acknowledged as the most influential contemporary work of Afghanistan. Written on the eve of 9/11, at the height of Afghanistan’s isolation from the world, Jason Elliot’s uncannily prescient account of his winter journey through the country torn by civil war is as pertinent today as it was then.Winner of the Thomas Cook/Daily Telegraph Travel Book AwardThe New York Times bestseller recounts the author’s daring and passionate investigation into an extraordinary culture, first as a clandestine guest of the mujaheddin during the Soviet occupation, and ten years later during the Taliban advance on the besieged capital, Kabul.This edition of An Unexpected Light is illustrated with the author’s photographs and celebrates a classic work of travel literature.‘Jason Elliot is that rare traveller who surrenders himself to people and places and this tale is a many-layered reconstruction of his experience . . . I am sure this book will soon be among the classics of travel’ – Doris Lessing‘An Unexpected Light is often unexpectedly funny and constantly perceptive, but it is also profound’ – New York Times

Drawing on three years of travel and research, Mirrors of the Unseen offers a rare and timely portrait of Iran, introducing us to the sublime architecture of Isfahan, the forests of the north, the bleak landscapes of Kurdistan and the urban contradictions of the capital, Tehran. An exploration of Iran’s immensely rich heritage and a personal enquiry into the nature of Persian and Islamic art, it is a book rich in detail, wit and discovery.‘A work of profound thought, imagination, passion and ambition’ Sara Wheeler, Guardian‘Masterfully comprehensible accounts of Iran’s long and complex history, beautiful impassioned descriptions of Islamic art and architecture, some surprising and fascinating encounters with the locals – this is travel writing at its very best’ Daily Mail‘Informed by intelligence, humour, erudition, descriptive power and poetic prose, Mirrors of the Unseen is a joy to read’ Independent

An Unexpected Light, Travels in Afghanistan is widely acknowledged as the most influential contemporary work of Afghanistan. Written on the eve of 9/11, at the height of Afghanistan’s isolation from the world, Jason Elliot’s uncannily prescient account of his winter journey through the country torn by civil war is as pertinent today as it was then.Winner of the Thomas Cook/Daily Telegraph Travel Book AwardThe New York Times bestseller recounts the author’s daring and passionate investigation into an extraordinary culture, first as a clandestine guest of the mujaheddin during the Soviet occupation, and ten years later during the Taliban advance on the besieged capital, Kabul.This edition of An Unexpected Light is illustrated with the author’s photographs and celebrates a classic work of travel literature.‘Jason Elliot is that rare traveller who surrenders himself to people and places and this tale is a many-layered reconstruction of his experience . . . I am sure this book will soon be among the classics of travel’ – Doris Lessing‘An Unexpected Light is often unexpectedly funny and constantly perceptive, but it is also profound’ – New York Times

The world is about to change...In the months leading up to 9/11 the intelligence community is on high alert for terrorist threats. Former army officer Anthony Taverner is recruited by the Secret Intelligence Service for an apparently straightforward mission: to destroy a cache of the CIA's precious Stinger missiles in Taliban-held Afghanistan.But in the kaleidoscopic world of spying, nothing iswhat it seems. And as the struggle to avert a catastrophe begins, Taverner's allegiance is to an authority he must keep secret from even his closest allies...

Lonely Planet: The world's leading travel guide publisher*Unexpected stories from unexpected places.Many places can feel like nowhere: a desert, an isolated village, even the middle of a bustling, impersonal city. And then something happens: an adventure, a revelation, an experience that changes the whole landscape. The discovery that every place is the centre of the world to somebody and has its own riches and wonders. The authors of these 30 real-life tales find passion, surprise and illumination in the middle of Borneo or Beijing, in a Mayan mountain village, along a timeworn trail in Tuscany, on an isolated South Pacific island, or under a desert moon in Mali.These richly varied stories all celebrate and illuminate one simple truth: if we embark on each adventure with an open heart and an open mind, travel will take us places we never planned to go, and enrich and enlighten us in ways we never otherwise would have known.Featuring stories by: Anthony Sattin, Danny Wallace, Jason Elliot, Pam Houston, Ralph Potts, Pico Iyer, Tim Cahill, Simon WinchesterAbout Lonely Planet: Started in 1973, Lonely Planet has become the world's leading travel guide publisher with guidebooks to every destination on the planet, as well as an award-winning website, a suite of mobile and digital travel products, and a dedicated traveller community. Lonely Planet's mission is to enable curious travellers to experience the world and to truly get to the heart of the places where they travel.TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice Awards 2012 and 2013 winner in Favorite Travel Guide category'Lonely Planet guides are, quite simply, like no other.' - New York Times'Lonely Planet. It's on everyone's bookshelves, it's in every traveller's hands. It's on mobile phones. It's on the Internet. It's everywhere, and it's telling entire generations of people how to travel the world.' - Fairfax Media (Australia) *#1 in the world market share - source: Nielsen Bookscan. Australia, UK and USA. March 2012-January 2013

An Unexpected Light, Travels in Afghanistan is widely acknowledged as the most influential contemporary work of Afghanistan. Written on the eve of 9/11, at the height of Afghanistan’s isolation from the world, Jason Elliot’s uncannily prescient account of his winter journey through the country torn by civil war is as pertinent today as it was then.Winner of the Thomas Cook/Daily Telegraph Travel Book AwardThe New York Times bestseller recounts the author’s daring and passionate investigation into an extraordinary culture, first as a clandestine guest of the mujaheddin during the Soviet occupation, and ten years later during the Taliban advance on the besieged capital, Kabul.This edition of An Unexpected Light is illustrated with the author’s photographs and celebrates a classic work of travel literature.‘Jason Elliot is that rare traveller who surrenders himself to people and places and this tale is a many-layered reconstruction of his experience . . . I am sure this book will soon be among the classics of travel’ – Doris Lessing‘An Unexpected Light is often unexpectedly funny and constantly perceptive, but it is also profound’ – New York Times

Drawing on three years of travel and research, Mirrors of the Unseen offers a rare and timely portrait of Iran, introducing us to the sublime architecture of Isfahan, the forests of the north, the bleak landscapes of Kurdistan and the urban contradictions of the capital, Tehran. An exploration of Iran’s immensely rich heritage and a personal enquiry into the nature of Persian and Islamic art, it is a book rich in detail, wit and discovery.‘A work of profound thought, imagination, passion and ambition’ Sara Wheeler, Guardian‘Masterfully comprehensible accounts of Iran’s long and complex history, beautiful impassioned descriptions of Islamic art and architecture, some surprising and fascinating encounters with the locals – this is travel writing at its very best’ Daily Mail‘Informed by intelligence, humour, erudition, descriptive power and poetic prose, Mirrors of the Unseen is a joy to read’ Independent

An Unexpected Light, Travels in Afghanistan is widely acknowledged as the most influential contemporary work of Afghanistan. Written on the eve of 9/11, at the height of Afghanistan’s isolation from the world, Jason Elliot’s uncannily prescient account of his winter journey through the country torn by civil war is as pertinent today as it was then.Winner of the Thomas Cook/Daily Telegraph Travel Book AwardThe New York Times bestseller recounts the author’s daring and passionate investigation into an extraordinary culture, first as a clandestine guest of the mujaheddin during the Soviet occupation, and ten years later during the Taliban advance on the besieged capital, Kabul.This edition of An Unexpected Light is illustrated with the author’s photographs and celebrates a classic work of travel literature.‘Jason Elliot is that rare traveller who surrenders himself to people and places and this tale is a many-layered reconstruction of his experience . . . I am sure this book will soon be among the classics of travel’ – Doris Lessing‘An Unexpected Light is often unexpectedly funny and constantly perceptive, but it is also profound’ – New York Times

The world is about to change...In the months leading up to 9/11 the intelligence community is on high alert for terrorist threats. Former army officer Anthony Taverner is recruited by the Secret Intelligence Service for an apparently straightforward mission: to destroy a cache of the CIA's precious Stinger missiles in Taliban-held Afghanistan.But in the kaleidoscopic world of spying, nothing iswhat it seems. And as the struggle to avert a catastrophe begins, Taverner's allegiance is to an authority he must keep secret from even his closest allies...

Lonely Planet: The world's leading travel guide publisher*Unexpected stories from unexpected places.Many places can feel like nowhere: a desert, an isolated village, even the middle of a bustling, impersonal city. And then something happens: an adventure, a revelation, an experience that changes the whole landscape. The discovery that every place is the centre of the world to somebody and has its own riches and wonders. The authors of these 30 real-life tales find passion, surprise and illumination in the middle of Borneo or Beijing, in a Mayan mountain village, along a timeworn trail in Tuscany, on an isolated South Pacific island, or under a desert moon in Mali.These richly varied stories all celebrate and illuminate one simple truth: if we embark on each adventure with an open heart and an open mind, travel will take us places we never planned to go, and enrich and enlighten us in ways we never otherwise would have known.Featuring stories by: Anthony Sattin, Danny Wallace, Jason Elliot, Pam Houston, Ralph Potts, Pico Iyer, Tim Cahill, Simon WinchesterAbout Lonely Planet: Started in 1973, Lonely Planet has become the world's leading travel guide publisher with guidebooks to every destination on the planet, as well as an award-winning website, a suite of mobile and digital travel products, and a dedicated traveller community. Lonely Planet's mission is to enable curious travellers to experience the world and to truly get to the heart of the places where they travel.TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice Awards 2012 and 2013 winner in Favorite Travel Guide category'Lonely Planet guides are, quite simply, like no other.' - New York Times'Lonely Planet. It's on everyone's bookshelves, it's in every traveller's hands. It's on mobile phones. It's on the Internet. It's everywhere, and it's telling entire generations of people how to travel the world.' - Fairfax Media (Australia) *#1 in the world market share - source: Nielsen Bookscan. Australia, UK and USA. March 2012-January 2013