Book Rap: Investigative journo to discuss 8 years in Afghanistan/Pakistan

Kim Barker will discuss her new book, The Taliban Shuffle: Strange Days in Afghanistan and Pakistan, at the National Press Club Book Rap on March 24, 6:30 p.m., in the Bloomberg Room.

Barker was an unlikely foreign correspondent—she did not own a passport, only spoke English, and knew little about Osama bin Laden or Islam. In the wake of 9/11, her bosses at the Chicago Tribune were looking to put reporters on the ground in the Middle East and Barker decided she was up for the challenge. She was later named the South Asia bureau chief for the Chicago Tribune. The Taliban Shuffle is her account of the 8 years she spent reporting on the “forgotten war” in Afghanistan and Pakistan after the U.S. military had left for Iraq.

The event is free for Club members, $5 for non-members. The book will be available for $26, and Barker will sign copies. Because it is a fundraiser for the Eric Friedheim National Journalism Library, outside books are not permitted.

Reservations are required at [email protected] or 202-662-7523.

-- Nicole Nottingham, [email protected]