With our troops now committed until 2009, The Unexpected War exposes the poverty of Canadian foreign policy, arguing that Canada’s various military missions in Afghanistan have been ad hoc in nature and made on the basis of political calculations—often flawed—about Canadian–American relations. Drawing upon interviews with key decision makers and advisors, and a first-hand account by a former Defence Ministry insider, the book offers a gripping account of how Canada became embroiled in a new kind of war—fighting insurgency in a failed state.

“The Unexpected War is a fine piece of work—well-written, engaging, informative and thorough (supported by inside information and insightful personal interview material). For anyone interested in a first-hand account of Canada's road to Kandahar—and the political and bureaucratic machinations that accompanied it—this book is a must read.”
—The Ottawa Citizen

“[A] riveting insider's account that will challenge any preconceived notions about the war, and might well leave you flabbergasted and hopping mad, regardless of where on the political spectrum your sympathies lie… a tour de force.”
—The Montreal Gazette

"If you want to know how Canada wound up on the front lines in Afghanistan, follow the dots in The Unexpected War: Canada in Kandahar. It reads like a whodunit. From the players, the private conversations and the presumptuous bravado in the Canadian and American corridors of power, this is the inside story."
—Sally Armstrong

"This book reveals tough realities about how public servants and politicians dither and avoid hard decisions in Ottawa, and about how our senior public service needs a deep shake-up. Its insights are more than timely, they are urgent!"
—Senator Hugh Segal, former Chair of the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade, and a Senior Fellow at the Queens School of Policy Studies

Surprising Poll on Unexpected War—The Globe and Mail

The Twisted Road to Kandahar—GlobeandMail.com

Credit-Takers Mute When it Comes to Afghanistan—The Chronicle Herald (Halifax)/Esprit de Corps

The Story That 'Needed to be Written'—The Belleville Intelligencer

How Our Troops Were Sent to War—The Montreal Gazette

Deeper and Deeper Into Afghanistan—The Ottawa Citizen

The Three-D Approach is Here to Stay—Embassy Magazine

Maclean’s, excerpt & interview—October 4, 2007

CBC.ca, Analysis & Viewpoint column by Larry Zolf—October 11, 2007