Jihadi: Path to Heaven

Jihadi: Path to Heaven is a novel describing the life of Zabiullah Omarkhel who was born in Afghanistan just prior to the Soviet/Afghan War. The book begins with his birth in the small village of Koh-e Dalan Sang nestled in the Panjshir Valley, and tells the story of his childhood and early schooling in the village's maktab (primary school).  It continues with his education at a madrassa (secondary school) in the province's capital city, Bazarak, where he is introduced to the teachings and ideology of an ultra-conservative version of Sunni Islam that will eventually give rise to the Taliban.  The continuing excesses and horrors of the Soviet occupation subsequently drive him into the hands of an even more radical group of mujahideen, the Soldiers of the Levant.  Eventually, he ends up at an al-Qaeda training camp in Herat, Afghanistan, and from there is persuaded to engage in Holy Jihad against those he believes are the cursed infidels who continue to defile his land and threaten Islam itself.  While telling this tale, the book explores the teachings of Islam, both traditional and radical, and examines the roots of the current conflict in the Middle East.  For Zabi there is only one Truth:  There is no god but God, and Muhammad is the Messenger of God;   and there is only one Path:  The Path to Heaven.