The Finest Hotel in Kabul: A People's History of Afghanistan
by Lyse Doucet
Description
In 1969, the Inter-Continental Hotel Kabul opened as a gleaming symbol of Afghanistan’s hopes for modernity—and it never truly closed, even as the country was repeatedly reshaped by war and regime change. Over decades, Lyse Doucet returns to the hotel’s battered walls to tell a people’s history through the lives of the Afghans who kept it running: a housekeeper trained in the hotel’s glamorous heyday, a pioneering chef who rebuilt after the Taliban’s fall, and young workers who grasped the promise of fragile democracy before 2021 upended everything again. Blending immersive reporting with intimate character portraits, the book traces how everyday labor, hospitality, and ambition endure amid upheaval. At its heart, it’s a story of resilience and belonging—where a single landmark becomes a lens on national identity, gender, and the costs of conflict.
Available Editions
paperback
Random House
Published Sep 18, 2025
294 pages
ISBN: 9781529151053
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Details
First Published
2025
Language
eng
Content Warnings
Content and trigger warnings for The Finest Hotel in Kabul: A People's History of Afghanistan by Lyse Doucet.