Apples Are from Kazakhstan: The Land that Disappeared 
Product Description: - A funny and revealing travelogue of Kazakhstan, a country rich with wild tulips, oil, nomads who hunt with golden eagles, and a disappearing landlocked sea.
Closed to foreigners under Tsar and Soviet rule, Kazakhstan has remained largely hidden from the world, a remarkable feat for a country the size of Western Europe. Few would guess that Kazakhstan—a blank in Westerners collective geography—turns out to be diverse, tolerant, and surprisingly modern, the country that gave the world apples, trousers, and even, perhaps, King Arthur.
Christopher Robbins enjoyed unprecedented access to the Kazakh president while crafting this travelogue, and he relates a story by turns hilarious and grim. He finds Eminem-worship by a shrinking Aral Sea, hears the Kazakh John Lennon play in a dusty desert town, joins nomads hunting eagles, eats boiled sheep s head (a delicacy), and explores some of the most beautiful, unspoiled places on earth. Observant and culturally attuned, Robbins is a master stylist in the tradition of travel writing as literature, a companion to V. S. Naipaul and Paul Theroux.
Customer Ratings: - Great writing and background research. This book is a delight to read, and his research seems to be very thorough. The little drawings are a lovely addition. It s good reading for those who know nothing about Kazakhstan as well as for those who ve been there...
- Amazing insights!. This is a great book for those interested in Kaz. Definitely will make you want to extend your visit!
- Excellent Intro. I found out I was going to Almaty for a month only a few days before I left. I frantically searched for Kazakhstan in Amazon and had this book overnighted. This book is an excellent introduction to the country and seems to accurately capture the gestalt of what Kazakhstan is. The writing is very good and the stories are always compelling. Though at times Robbins focuses too much on the Soviet past, this is to some extent necessary for understanding the country s current situation and mindset. I highly recommend this book.
- awesome reading. best book I ve ever read. will read over and over again. The chapters keep you interested and the author is supurb.
- Great personal exploration of Kazakhstan. As an adoptive parent planning to travel to Kazakhstan in the next few months, I really enjoyed this book. It gave some good history of the country and kept the reader engaged with personal stories of travel and friendships made. A great intro to Kazakhstan - it s people, climate, geography, and history and I particularly enjoyed the illustrations included on nearly every page.
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Apples Are from Kazakhstan: The Land that Disappeared (ID: 0977743381)
