Nazarbayev and the Making of Kazakhstan: From Communism to Capitalism

(Hardback)

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

Kazakhstan is colossal in size, complicated in its history, colourful in its culture and is a nation state that most outsiders know little of. Much of the existing narrative revolves around the country's first president, Nursultan Nazarbayev. But his life can only be understood in the context of the land in which he was born, raised and became a leader.
For centuries the tribes of Kazakhstan had been plundered and conquered by foreign invaders. The most ruthless of these were the 20th century leaders of the Soviet Union, but after its collapse it was Nazarbayev who emerged as the new President of the nation state. Jonathan Aitken's masterly book is a riveting account of how Kazakhstan has capitalised on its natural resources (including oil) to become one of the great economic success stories of the modern era.
Nazarbayev himself is widely admired as a political leader and strategist, having overcome extraordinary crises including hyperinflation, food shortages and the emigration of two million people. However, his record on human rights is less than perfect and the independence of the judiciary and the press are questionable. Corruption is also widespread in Kazakh society, making it an easy target for Ali G in his movie Borat. The obstacles faced in becoming a successful economy are described and examined honestly in this truly fascinating story.

Reviews

Mention of author and book, The Observer. May 2009.
Article on book in Daily Telegraph, 17 June 2009.
Reuters, June 2009
Article in Observer Weekend, July 2009.
'Aitken [is] a capable and articulate biographer' - Asian Affairs
Article of the author in Observer Woman, July 2009
Interview in Fame & Fortune, Sunday Times.
'Interviews with key figures such as Gorbachev add oomph to the story. But what's really fascinating is learning why Nazarbayev led his nation away from Soviet-induced communities to oil-based capitalism, turning it into the most commercially-successful nation in Central Asia to emerge from the Bloc. 9/10' - Fife, Perth and Dundee Courier & Advertiser, South Wales Evening Post (Swansea), Leicester Mercury, East Anglian Daily Times, Sunderland Echo, Edinburgh Evening News, Sunday Sun (Newcastle)and Scotsman
'[Aitken] paints a fascinating portrait of Kazakhstan's remarkable president ... he puts Kazakhstan where it firmly belongs - near the top of any intensive diplomatic reading list for the 21st century.' - The Observer
'Extraordinary story ... it's a rattling good read.' - BBC Radio 4
Mentioned in Evening Standard Magazine, August 2009.

Author Bio

Jonathan Aitken is a former MP and cabinet minister. He is now an author, biographer and broadcaster. In 1995, the court found him guilty of perjury in a celebrated case against the Guardian newspaper and he spent 18 months in Belmarsh Prison. He subsequently studied theology at Oxford and in 2019, he was ordained an Anglican priest. He is now a full-time prison chaplain in London. He is the author of an award-winning biography of President Richard Nixon and has written a number of critically acclaimed books for Bloomsbury Continuum including a bestselling life of Margaret Thatcher (2013).