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Copyright © 2023 by Ian Fritz
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First Simon & Schuster hardcover edition November 2023
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The views expressed in this publication are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Department of Defense or the U.S. government. The public release clearance of this publication by the Department of Defense does not imply Department of Defense endorsement or factual accuracy of the material.
This book grew from the essay “What I Learned While Eavesdropping on the Taliban,” © 2021 by Ian Fritz, as first published in the Atlantic. Portions of the essay are reproduced throughout the book.
“Baby We’ll Be Fine.” Words and Music by Matthew D. Berninger and Aaron Brooking Dessner. Copyright © 2005 Val Jester Music and ABD 13 Music. All Rights Administered by BMG Rights Management (US) LLC. All Rights Reserved. Used by Permission. Reprinted by Permission of Hal Leonard LLC.
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Interior design by Wendy Blum
Jacket design by Eric Fuentecilla
Jacket photograph by Jose_Matheus/Shutterstock
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Fritz, Ian, 1990– author.
Title: What the Taliban told me / Ian Fritz.
Description: First Simon & Schuster hardcover edition. | New York : Simon and Schuster, 2023. | “This book grew from the essay ‘What I Learned While Eavesdropping on the Taliban,’ first published in the Atlantic. Portions of the essay are reproduced throughout the book.”
Identifiers: LCCN 2023010727 (print) | LCCN 2023010728 (ebook) | ISBN 9781668010693 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781668010679 (paperback) | ISBN 9781668010686 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Fritz, Ian, 1990– | Operation Enduring Freedom, 2001—Personal narratives, American. | United States. United States. Air Force—Biography. | Military linguists—Afghanistan—Biography. | Afghan War, 2001–2021—Aerial operations, American. | Special operations (Military science)—United States—History—21st century. | United States. Air Force. Intelligence Squadron, 25th—Biography. | Taliban.
Classification: LCC DS371.413 .F75 2023 (print) | LCC DS371.413 (ebook) | DDC 958.104/7480973 [B]—dc23/eng/20230425
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2023010727
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2023010728
ISBN 978-1-6680-1069-3
ISBN 978-1-6680-1068-6 (ebook)