Pakistan

Pakistani writer Bapsi Sidhwa (Bop-see SEED-wah). Her new novel is "Cracking India," which tells the story of the Partition of India through the eyes of an eight-year-old girl named Lenny. Sidhwa has written other novels as well, "The Bride," and "Ice-Candy-Man," both stories told through female characters. She'll talk with Terry about her books and women's rights in Pakistan.

World Music commentator Milo Miles finds the ideal record to introduce Americans to Pakistani music: Nusrat Fateh Ali Kahn and his "Devotional & Love Songs."

Guitarist Salman Ahmad (Sol-MAHN AH-MAHD) and bassist Brian O'Connell, from the Pakistani rock band Junoon (Ju-NOON). They are Pakistani's best-selling band, with four albums, and 2-million sales. They've gained an international following thanks to the Internet and MTV. The band also includes lead singer, Ali Azmat. The group is currently on tour.

Human Rights Lawyer Asma Jahangir. Shes been at the forefront of the movements for womens rights, human rights and peace in Pakistan for twenty years. She co-founded the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. In her work shes defended a boy against the charge of blasphemy-the penalty would have been death. Shes defended the right of women to chose their own husbands. Because of her efforts shes been arrested, received death threats, and been the target of hostile propaganda.

Pakistani novelist and New Yorker Mohsin Hamid. His debut novel is Moth Smoke

Syndicated columnist and biographer Richard Reeves. His most recent book is President Nixon: Alone in the White House (Simon & Schuster). Hes also written books about Presidents Reagan, Kennedy, Clinton, and Ford. Reeves is former chief political correspondent of The New York Times. He is currently Visiting Professor of Journalism at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern California.

Pakistani journalist Ahmed Rashid. He's the author of the book, Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil, and Fundamentalism in Central Asia (Yale University Press-2000). Rashid's book has been called the most in-depth study of the Taliban. Rashid is a correspondent for the Far Eastern Economic Review and the Daily Telegraph, reporting on Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Central Asia.

Activist Greg Mortenson is the founder and Executive Director of the Central Asia Institute. Since 1993, the organization has opened schools and provided an education for over 4000 girls in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The schools promote literacy, women vocational skills, public health and environmental awareness. Mortenson splits his time between Central Asia and Montana.

Journalist Owen Bennett Jones is the author of Pakistan: Eye of the Storm. In the book, he examines the country's turbulent 55-year history. He'll discuss Pakistan's history and its current relationship with the United States. Jones lives in England and has written for The Guardian, The Financial Times and The Independent newspapers and the London Review of Books. He has also reported for BBC Radio and BBC World Television.

Albert Brooks has a new movie: Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World. In it, he plays himself — and the comedian is sent to India and Pakistan by the State Department to find out what makes Muslims laugh.

Before most Americans had heard of the Taliban, Pakistani journalist Ahmed Rashid wrote a book about them. After the Sept. 11 attacks, it became a best-seller. Rashid's recent reporting for English-language newspapers involves Islamist militants in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Gordon Corera, security correspondent for the BBC, warns in his new book that we may be entering a new era of accelerated weapons proliferation. In Shopping for Bombs, Corera writes about the challenges of halting the proliferation of nuclear weapons and about A.Q. Khan, the man described by a former CIA director as at least as dangerous as Osama bin Laden.

In a single monologue, the protagonist of Mohsin Hamid's sophomore novel, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, tells his life story to an American stranger over dinner in a Pakistani cafe. Hamid's first novel, Moth Smoke, was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year.

Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf faces protests at home — and given his stance on the Taliban, eroding support in the West as well. Journalist and author Ahmed Rashid parses the challenges and possibilities of contemporary Pakistani politics.

For 25 years, author and journalist Ahmed Rashid has covered Pakistan, Afghanistan and Central Asia.

He files for English language papers including the International Herald Tribune, The Wall Street Journal and The Daily Telegraph. Based in Lahore, Rashid is the author of the bestselling books, Taliban and Jihad.

Arrests and protests have followed last week's declaration of martial law in Pakistan, where President Pervez Musharraf has ousted the chief justice and cracked down on dissent

Journalist Ahmed Rashid, a regular guest on Fresh Air, tells Terry Gross that Musharraf's latest gambit could encourage more civil strife — and greater territorial gains by the Taliban.

Rashid reports on Pakistan and Islamic fundamentalism for several Western newspapers. He's also the author of the best-selling book Taliban.

In a new book, two British investigative journalists dig into the story of Pakistan's clandestine nuclear network — and America's role not just in condoning its ally's nuclear ambitions, but aiding them.

Adrian Levy and Catherine Scott-Clark are senior correspondents for the Guardian newspaper; both previously worked for the Sunday Times of London.

Their book is titled Deception: Pakistan, the United States, and the Secret Trade in Nuclear Weapons.

Pakistani journalist Ahmed Rashid, a regular Fresh Air guest, joins us again to assess recent developments in his home country and to preview the upcoming election there. Born in Lahore and based in Pakistan, Rashid has written for The Washington Post, the International Herald Tribune, London's Daily Telegraph and other publications. He's also the author of several best-selling books.

Pakistani journalist Ahmed Rashid, a regular Fresh Air analyst, joins Terry Gross for an update on Pakistani politics after the assassination of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto.

Journalist Ahmed Rashid's new book, Descent into Chaos, examines the Unites States' nation-building efforts in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Central Asia. Rashid argues that U.S. efforts have failed — and served to destabilize the region further.