'(Mahvish Khan’s) portraits of these dignified, bewildered prisoners are unforgettable … Of all the many books about the evil that is Guantánamo - by released detainees of various nationalities, as well as some of the most distinguished lawyers in America - this one, though full of pain, has enough joy, jokes and insight to make it my recommendation for anyone who still wonders what Guantánamo is really like.'

Victoria Brittain (The Guardian)

'My Guantanarno Diary humanises the men behind the serial numbers and offers a window into their daily lives of deprivation and abuse, as well as exploring the circumstances behind their capture.'

Thuy On (The Age)

'My Guantanamo Diary provides a valuable account of what we can now recognise as one of the most shameful episodes in the war on terror. It is hard to read this book without a growing sense of embarrassment and indignation.'

Jeffrey Rosen (New York Times Book Review)

'Revealing near-universal abuse, both mental and physical, inflicted on the prisoners, Khan’s account is plenty powerful — and that’s before she travels alone to war-torn Afghanistan in order to prove her clients’ innocence. Khan also divulges her poignant reunions with several prisoners following their release, a bittersweet breath of fresh air amid a nightmarish, eye-opening and important account.'

(Publishers Weekly)

'A gutsy and disturbing exposé of U.S. civilian and military personnel out of control.'

(Kirkus Review)

‘My Guantanamo Diary is the first thing I have read that brings to life the place and its inmates. By turns saddening and enraging, and also amusing, it is splendidly written. This is an outstanding book.’

Aryeh Neier, President, Open Society Institute and former executive director of Human Rights Watch

'Reliable information is still scarce about Guantánamo, but increasingly we’re gaining glimpses of life there … Mahvish Rukhsana Khan, an American woman of Afghan descent who worked as an interpreter, has written a book to be published next month, My Guantánamo Diary, that is wrenching to read. She describes a pediatrician who returned to Afghanistan in 2003 to help rebuild his country — and was then arrested by Americans, beaten, doused with icy water and paraded around naked. Finally, after three years, officials apparently decided he was innocent and sent him home …'

Nicholas Kristof (New York Times)

'My Guantanamo Diary offers a glimpse into a part of the war on terror intentionally kept in darkness. Reading it will change you. With any luck, it will change the world.'

(St. Petersburg Times)

'To the Afghans she met, [Mahvish] brought much more than ... her knowledge of the culture and country her parents had told her about. With her bunches of flowers and scented rice and lamb dishes, and her easy chat about anything at all, she restored them from numbers to human beings again.'

(The Guardian)

'Stunning details all but hidden from the daily news reports may bring American readers to conclude, as has Khan, that 'my government has duped me.'

(Booklist)

'Outraged by the treatment of Guantanamo detainees, Afghan-American lawyer volunteers to translate for them. Understanding their customs, she made friends with many of the prisoners, and here tells their compelling and disquieting stories.'

(Bookseller)

'A surprisingly easy and accessible book, My Guantanamo Diary is a fantastic introduction to the criminal and morally reprehensible nature of the "war on terror".'

(Morning Star)

'Kahn's book is a powerful reminder that these men have all been away from their families for more than five years - and that they have all been denied a fair hearing. My Guantánamo Diary argues persuasively for this aberration to US law to be resolved.'

Chaz Folkes (Financial Times)

'It offers uniquely detailed, first-hand portraits of detainees that take us beyond the faceless evil they are so often deemed to embody. The portraits are discomforting for their obvious humanity.'

Waleed Aly (Australian Literary review)

Mahvish's Khan's important and haunting book about her experiences as translator for Afghan detainees is fascinating and readable if disturbing and distressing.'

Tully Barnett (Adelaide Review)