The Game: The Economy of Undocumented Migration from Afghanistan to Europe

— —

Hannah Pool (Senior Researcher, Senior Researcher, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies)

The Game

Name: The Game
Price: 55.95 AUD
Availability: OutOfStock
ISBN: 9780197812280

The Economy of Undocumented Migration from Afghanistan to Europe

Hannah Pool (Senior Researcher, Senior Researcher, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies)

$55.95

Paperback

Not in-store but you can order this
How long will it take?

Availability Information

We source books from suppliers in Australia and overseas. For books we don't currently have in stock, the time it takes to get them from our suppliers can vary widely - from a few days to a few months - so we check each book with each supplier to determine the expected time it will take to be supplied to us.

We will update you on expected arrival time to us. If this delay is too long, please let us know within 2 business days and we can give you options regarding cancelling or adjusting your order. More details on cancelling your order can be found in our Terms of Trade.

To find out the anticipated arrival time for specific items prior to ordering, please contact us by phone or email:

Phone +61 2 9264 3111, or 1800 4 BOOKS (1800 4 26657) if outside Sydney:
option 1 Abbey's Bookshop (Crime, History, Science, Kids & more) • info@abbeys.com.au
option 2 Language Book Centre (ESL & Foreign Languages) • language@abbeys.com.au
option 3 Galaxy Bookshop (Sci-fi, Fantasy, Romance, Graphic Novels) • sf@galaxybooks.com.au

QTY:

English

Oxford University Press Inc
27 November 2025

Refugees & political asylum; Social discrimination; Human rights

Series: Oxford Studies in Migration and Citizenship

To seek asylum, people often have to cross borders undocumented, embarking on perilous trajectories. Due to the war in Afghanistan, the rule of the Taliban, and severe human rights violations, over the past decades thousands of people have risked their lives to seek safety. By what means do they make these journeys, especially when they lack money and passports?

Over the course of three years, Hannah Pool accompanied a group of Afghan friends and families as they attempted ""The Game"" - Game zadan: the route to Europe to seek asylum. The resulting ethnography follows them across their entire trajectories: through Iran, Turkey, Greece, and along the so-called Balkan route. In each place, Pool details the economic interactions and social relationships essential for acquiring, saving, borrowing, spending, and exchanging money to facilitate their undocumented migration routes.

The Game bridges economic sociology and migration studies to illustrate how migrants decide to trust people to facilitate their movement along these routes, focusing particularly on debt, special monies, bribes, donations, and gift-giving. Throughout the migration trajectory, relationships with family, fellow migrants, smugglers, humanitarian actors, and border control officials shape and are shaped by access to financial resources. Ultimately, the book highlights the dangers in undocumented border-crossing and delves into the core of what it means to flee: Who has the means to escape dangerous conditions to seek asylum?

By: Hannah Pool (Senior Researcher Senior Researcher Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies)
Imprint: Oxford University Press Inc
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 226mm, Width: 152mm, Spine: 20mm
Weight: 386g
ISBN: 9780197812280
ISBN 10: 0197812287
Series: Oxford Studies in Migration and Citizenship
Pages: 272
Publication Date: 27 November 2025
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

List of Illustrations List of Tables Abbreviations Acknowledgements Protagonists 1. Introduction 2. Iran 3. Turkey 4. Greece 5. Balkan Route 6. Germany 7. Conclusion 8. Epilogue Appendix Bibliography Index

Hannah Pool is a Senior Researcher at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies. She has conducted extensive research on undocumented migration trajectories across Iran, Turkey, Greece, the Balkan route, and Germany. She studied at the University of Tehran and St. Andrews and has been a visiting scholar at both Oxford University and Columbia University, furthering her expertise in migration studies and economic sociology.