PULITZER PRIZE FINALISTNATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALISTWINNER OF THE RIDENHOUR PRIZEIn a breathtaking chronicle, acclaimed journalist Anand Gopal traces the lives of three Afghans caught in America's war on terror. He follows a Taliban commander, who rises from scrawny teenager to leading insurgent; a US-backed warlord, who uses the American military to gain wealth and power; and a village housewife trapped between the two sides, who discovers the devastating cost of neutrality. Through their dramatic stories emerges a stunning tale of how the United States had triumph in sight in Afghanistan-and then brought the Taliban back from the dead. This new edition includes an afterword by the author written after his return to Afghanistan following the US withdrawal, and a new preface reflecting on the 25th anniversary of the US invasion and a quarter-century of the Global War on Terror.