Read The World - Uzbekistan - A Carpet Ride To Khiva

Book: A Carpet Ride To Khiva
Author: Christopher Aslan Alexander
Pages: 336
Book takes place in the country: YES
Author is from the country: NO (but lived there for many years)
I have visited: NO

This is my 96th read for the year

This is the non-fiction story of a British man named Chris Alexander.  He traveled to Khiva to write a guidebook and ended up being mesmerised by the area and staying.  He become facinated by the ancient Silk Road, and ended up opening a shop to weave intricate carpets that were native to the area.  The story is his journey of living as a foreigner in this part of the world - how he fell in love with the people, the struggles he had living there (and what he saw around him - like frequent power outages and constant bribes to get things done), and finally the heartbreak when he had to leave.

This story was incredible.  First - the book is very well written.  Non-fiction for me can go only two ways - extremely interesting, or extremely dull.  I hardly ever find just a middle of the road book.  This one, thankfully was extremely interesting and I found myself reading late into the night just to finish the book.  The stories he shared, and the situations he witnessed will draw you in.   I am always impressed with people like Chris - who takes a leap like the one he did in a country that can be tricky for expats.  Yes - we moved to Switzerland as expats, but this is Uzbekistan.  Totally different ballgame.

You will love this book.  I learned an incredible amount about a country I knew nothing about.  Please take a chance to read this book.  You will not be disappointed.

Stars: 4 1/2