The Soccer War

I love Kapuściński's work. Many who criticize the book do so either because there is not enough straight-up journalism in it, or too much self-reportage and not enough plain old literature. They miss the point. He described his work as 'literary reportage;' and that is what it is.If you've never been in similar circumstances, you cannot completely understand the motivation for Kapuściński's style. He lived in absurd times, under a Polish Soviet Communist regime that did its best to make everyone go along with Ivan in order to avoid bloodshed and slaughter. To wit: Witness the ambiguous status of Poland's last communist dictator, General Wojciech Jaruzelski. He was not strung up by the people or jailed by subsequent democratic governments after the wall fell. His defense was that he was keeping the country from a full Soviet take-over. His excuse is controversial, but such were the times Mr. Kapuściński lived in as he reported for the state run press.Add to this the surreal aspects of the exotic places he reported from, and I don't see how anyone in his position could not take literary flight. I see him somewhat as a Polish Kurt Vonnegut, employing immediate literary prose to mine deep reality, sifting and shaking it to bring us horrible realities while understanding that life is both tragic and comic. Miguel de Unamuno stated that consciousness is a disease, and Kapuściński understood that, whether he ever read the quote or not.He has been accused of artistic embroidery and sometimes making things up out of whole cloth, but you learn more about the places and times he wrote about from his books than you ever could by combing old newspaper clippings written by 'legitimate' journalists. Ryszard Kapuściński was a brilliant and original writer. If one understands where he is coming from, one can then gain a greater appreciation for his works.

As somebody who once lived in Honduras before the infamous soccer war of 1969, I long had Kapuscinski's book on my "must read" list. Though I bought it five years ago, I didn't get around to reading it till just now. I'm glad I did. THE SOCCER WAR is another sterling volume from this master of description.THE SOCCER WAR isn't a book about the absurd war between El Salvador and Honduras, triggered by World Cup qualification matches, but really caused by El Salvador's overpopulation and the subsequent overflow of Salvadorenos into much-emptier Honduras. The war may also be ascribed to the fact that neither country has been able to tame its landowning classes, who continue to this day to run rampant over the poor masses of people. In any case, this war, which happened decades ago, occupies only 30 pages of a 234 page book. The rest of the book contains vignettes from Ghana, Nigeria, Congo, Burundi, Algeria, Tanganyika, Syria, Cyprus, and Ethiopia. I think another title would have given readers a better idea of what the book is about. Anyway, I would not say this book is about particular societies or countries, rather it is about the human condition. Kapuscinski, if you have read any of his other (excellent) work, specializes in inserting himself into extreme situations----war, rebellion, conflict, and abnormal behavior. Where the strictures of daily life have fallen down, we find him reporting, usually at considerable risk to his person. He is nearly burned to death in Nigeria, nearly executed in Burundi, nearly lynched in the Congo, nearly blown up in Honduras. In every case, he manages to portray some participants as humane and decent, or as simple people caught up in events beyond their control. He never writes off groups of people as `wild' or `barbarous', but manages to `read' them even as he faces almost certain death. The absurdity of all this violence, the violence that never ends on this planet, comes through loud and clear. Ryszard, you wrote your best, but nobody in charge listened. Readers of the book, however, will come away with a better understanding of human nature and its universal similarity on every continent, among every race and religion. From the stupidity, waste, and blood, we can learn. We just don't.

This book moves from Africa to South America describing wars and coups and giving insights into the psyche of the people living there, explaining the situation and the reasons behind failures and disasters of 3rd world politicians. In his own words `The essence of the drama lies in the terrible material resistance that one encounters taking his first and second steps to the summit of power. Each one wants to do something good and begins to do it, and then sees, after a month, a year, 3 years, that it just isn't happening, that it is slipping away, that it is bogged down in sand. Everything is in the way: the centuries of backwardness, the primitive economy, the illiteracy, the religious fanaticism, the tribal blindness, the chronic hunger......the unemployment, the red ink.....the politician begins to push too hard. Helooks for a way out, through dictatorship. The dictatorship fathers an opposition. The opposition organises a coup.'The title of the book refers to the war between Honduras and San Salvador, a war that started due to Mexican world cup qualifying football match 30 odd years ago between the 2 countries. The extent of the love of football and nationalism it engenders amongst poor people in these countries can only be rivalled by religeous fervour. A lesson indeed on how to get things out of proportion and although in the end these 2 countries were satisfied with the outcome let us all hope that meetings around a table will solve problems one day. Another part of the book describes Ryszard's dislike of desks and beaurocracy - this is very memorable. Many other interesting articles in this book and definately one for the collector of travel and world history books.

I’ve read much of Mr Kapuscinski’s work. I love his style of dramatic journalism. He’s been criticised for inaccuracies in his reporting, but he really gets over the “feel” of being in the middle of history

Wonderful insight into the ussr from the 60's to the era if gorbaciov. A view into less know places like Azerbaijan Kazakhstan Turkmenistan It helped me understand the problems Russia and Ukraine are now facing and it open my eyes to what Stalin did to millions of people. Shocking that people only speak about what hitler did. This guy was probably worse !!

It’s a fascinating insightful book. Beautifully written. I wouldn’t say it’s “ enjoyable “ because of the subject matter. However, in every other respect it’s brilliant. Also it’s not too long! Whets your appetite for more of his books.

The other reviews give you a basic outline so I'll just tell you why you need to read this book. Kapuscinski was one of the greatest reporters around and his books are considered masterpieces in the use of the Polish language. "The Soccer War" was my introduction to this amazing man and, though episodic, the book has its moments of sheer horror. There's that moment when, whilst at a political meeting, you realise that all those around you, baying for blood, only see the colour of your skin - not your nationality. There's the chaos in the Congo when whites are being pulled out into the streets to be beaten and you wonder how the hell you got here. Then there's the depressing reality of politics in a colony that has to grow up overnight. Kapuscinski was the fly in the ointment; a newsman from a non-colonial state who found himself watching the collapse of empires in Africa whilst at the same time confronting the politically correct taskmasters back home in Poland. You can't fail to be gripped by the book.