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AK47: The Story of the People's Gun
 
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AK47: The Story of the People's Gun (Hardcover)

by Michael Hodges (Author)
3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
RRP: £16.99
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  • This item: AK47: The Story of the People's Gun by Michael Hodges

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Product details

  • Hardcover: 224 pages
  • Publisher: Sceptre; First Edition edition (28 Jun 2007)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0340921048
  • ISBN-13: 978-0340921043
  • Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 15.2 x 3 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 416,272 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #90 in  Books > Sports, Hobbies & Games > Fishing, Birdwatching & Other Outdoor Pursuits > Hunting & Shooting > Small Firearms, Guns & Other Equipment

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  • See Complete Table of Contents

Product Description

Product Description

In the sixty years since General Kalashnikov created the AK's distinctive silhouette, the gun has been at the centre of conflicts across the Middle East, Africa and Latin America. The weapon that made him a 'Hero of the Soviet Union' has also appeared on t-shirts and vodka bottles, featured in videos and song lyrics and been re-fashioned in crystal - a gift from Putin to George W. Bush.

Power, politics and passion combine in the story of a weapon that has shaped the modern world. Using testimonies of people who have experienced the gun at first-hand - including a Sudanese child soldier, a Vietcong veteran, and Yorkshire student - Michael Hodges provides a compelling account of how the AK47 became an icon that ranks alongside Coca-Cola as one of the most recognisable brands in the world.


About the Author

Michael Hodges is a journalist who has reported extensively from the Middle East.

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Customer Reviews

5 Reviews
5 star:
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4 star:
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3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:
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Average Customer Review
3.8 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
9 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars Waste of Time, 26 April 2008
By Mr. W. S. Albertson - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: AK47: The Story of the People's Gun (Paperback)
This book plenty of potential had the author not been so lazy. Most of the stories he tells are second hand information with names changed for some reason. The voice changed so frequently I had to wonder if he actually got his information from the sources himself or just lifted it from previous works on the AK. His knowledge of the rifle itself is minimal. He only states the obvious(position of the safety, shape of the magazine,etc) that anyone can see from a photo. There was no information passed on that someone would glean from actually handling the weapon. I doubt he's even ever fired one. You'd think that would be something he would want to do in order to write a book about it. Finally, his views on New Orleans were laughable. He stated that the NOPD were forced to bring in the US Marshals and the FBI to hunt for fugitives and aid in investigations shows his ignorance of the subject matter. That's what the Marshal service and the FBI do all the time in every major city in America. I was really disappointed as this subject really has a lot of potential.
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1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars It's a social history - not a technical manual, 18 Oct 2008
By Martin Lowe (England) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: AK47: The Story of the People's Gun (Paperback)
I was loaned this book by a friend who said "It's alright, but not very technical".

I think he missed the point somewhat. After reading the book, you can see that it's not supposed to be technical. It is, if you like, a social history of one of the most widely used weapons of our time and uses the weapon as the unifying theme between several people's stories.

The last couple of chapters (covering Iraq and domestic adoption of the weapon in the US) are weak, as if the publisher's deadline was looming, but the chapters covering a child soldier in Africa and the life story of Mikhael Kalashnikov himself are excellent pieces and together make the book worth the cover price alone

So, in summary, if you are expecting a technical manual you'll be disappointed. But it's a good read if you want a window into the lives of the people around the world who use it.
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1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars How many AK 47s to the $ these days?, 30 April 2008
By Rob Sawyer (Hampshire UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: AK47: The Story of the People's Gun (Paperback)
This was an impulse buy - ish. I saw it at Heathrow and thought I might find it interesting, so ordered through our friends here rather than waste money. Although I have a load of other books to read this came to the surface as I was rather curious to see what it was like and I was not disappointed.

The book takes us from the late 1940s and Mikhail Kalashnikov's entry to the Red Army assault rifle competition through to New Orleans and hurricane Katrina.

There are 70 million+ AKs in the world, all doing their bit to demonstrate man's inhumanity to man. Some of it is shocking from a graphical point of view yet I was more shocked by the way in which the AK has become a currency around the world in deprived and or war torn zones.

I was so curious I went on line and found many many places to buy them - $200 for a 650 rounds per minute semi-automatic assault rifle - available now in the US.

I found the book fascinating, I can't say I enjoyed it as that would be rather a tactless word to use, but it is interesting to see how one weapon has had such an influence on the world since the end of the Second World War.

And is General Kalashnikov to blame? I don't think so, if it hadn't have been him it would have been someone else.








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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Buy this book
Michael Hodges writes a thrilling account of the social and politcal history of the AK 47. I really enjoyed this book and thoroughly recommend it.
Published on 15 Aug 2007 by Mrs. M. Haigh

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent Read
If your into guns or not this is an entertaining book. it includes accounts of people who have lived with an AK or AK's for a prolonged period of time. Read more
Published on 15 Jul 2007 by Thedeester1

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