The Soccer War

by Ryszard Kapuscinski

Overview

Part diary and part reportage, The Soccer War is a remarkable chronicle of war in the late twentieth century. Between 1958 and 1980, working primarily for the Polish Press Agency, Kapuscinski covered twenty-seven revolutions and coups in Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East. Here, with characteristic cogency and emotional immediacy, he recounts the stories behind his official press dispatches—searing firsthand accounts of the frightening, grotesque, and comically absurd aspects of life during war. The Soccer War is a singular work of journalism.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780804151108
Publisher:	Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Publication date:	08/21/2013
Series:	Vintage International
Sold by:	Random House
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Ryszard Kapuscinski, Poland’s most celebrated foreign correspondent, was born in 1932 in Pinsk (in what is now Belarus) and spent four decades reporting on Asia, Latin America, and Africa. He is also the author of Imperium, Another Day of Life, and The Soccer War. His books have been translated into 28 languages. Kapuscinski died in 2007.

Editorial Reviews

Kapuscinski reports on unrest in Africa, Latin America and the Middle East. ``Journalism at its most incisive, these phosphorescent dispatches from the front investigate Third World wars of 1958-1976, probing the forces of political repression and societies stagnating or in the throes of change,'' said PW. (Jan.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Being a foreign correspondent is not a job but a way of life; as Kapuscinski reveals in his latest book, that includes almost being burned to death and facing a firing squad. Unlike his popular The Emperor ( LJ 12/15/82) and Shah of Shahs ( LJ 3/15/85), he presents here the personal stories behind his press releases. Though the title refers to the 100-hour war between El Salvador and Honduras over a soccer match that left 6000 dead and 12,000 wounded, Kapuscinski's reminiscences range from 1958 to 1976 when he covered 27 revolts worldwide. He concludes that the immobility of the masses in the Third World is so problematic that even good leaders begin to confuse power with wisdom and thus lose the ability to distinguish politics from morality, or to work for the common good instead of themselves. Despite some interesting ideas and descriptions of terrifying experiences, Kapuscinski's account really adds little to the reader's knowledge. Public libraries only should consider.-- Louise Leonard, Univ. of Florida Libs., Gainesville

Library Journal

"When our children's children want to study the cruelties of the late 20th century; when they wonder why revolution after revolution betrayed its promises through greed, fear and confusion, they should read Ryszard Kapuscinski." —The Wall Street Journal"Kapuscinski is the conjuror extraordinary of modern reportage, and The Soccer War is a splendid example of his magic."—John le Carré"Powerful and touching."—The New York Times Book Review"Stripped of excess, remarkably void of cynicism, Kapuscinski's writing has the force and vision of literature . . . . He makes his world so real, so alive beyond obscure headlines and other mind-numbing inoculations."—Boston Globe

From the Publisher