Education: What are the goals and results of the education program outlined in “American Lashkargah”? How is it different from the education offered in the more traditional Afghan schools?

English: How is the kind of writing Ansary does different from the poetry his father writes? This question might be used as a starting point for an investigation of genre, style, and tone.

Sociology: What are the differences between the type of society described in the early chapters and the later chapters? If one adopts a different gender or class position from the author’s how does one’s view of things change?

Philosophy and religion: Most material on the history of Islam is contained in the early section on the traditional Afghan school (pages 46-51) and the section on “Looking for Islam.” What is religious fundamentalism? How are the traditional practices Ansary remembers from his youth different from the practices of contemporary fundamentalists that he describes?

History: This book touches on many important historical issues: the importance of Southwest Asia in early trade routes, the rise of Islam, the history of British colonialism, the cold war, and the recent rise of recent Islamic fundamentalism. Yet, each is handled with a light and personal touch. Students might enjoy looking at documents that present alternative views. Many may be found through the links section.

Bicultural studies: Ansary says that “growing up bicultural is like straddling a crack in the earth.” Students might want to use this as a starting point for their own investigations.

Travel and tourism: Travel and tourism students might want to discuss the possible implications on tourism of various changes described in the book. Not mentioned, but interesting, is the Taliban’s choice to destroy ancient Buddhist statues that pre-dated the arrival of Islam in Afghanistan.

Psychology: There is a wealth of material here on family dynamics. How do the relationships described in the book differ from notions of normal family life in psychology? Does this tell us these notions are Western-centric? How does birth order affect relationship to the original culture in the Ansary family? Is this typical of other families in the students’ experiences?

Business: Ansary discussed traditional Islamic aversion to charging interest. It might be instructive to consider what types of business arrangements this encourages.