[2] Cohen notes how the vision of Pakistan as a state for the Muslims of South Asia was torn apart with the creation of Bangladesh in 1971.

[5] Ahmad Faruqui notes how Cohen acknowledges that "the relentless pursuit of Kashmir has done more damage to Pakistan than any other single issue".

[5] Ahmad Faruqui notes how the "book’s implicit hypothesis is that Pakistan's insecurities have led to military rule".

[6] India Today writes that the book "is a detailed biography of a state let down by men as well as history, with every act of salvation ending as betrayal...".

Rizwan Web of the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies writes that Cohen says that Pakistan is run by the "Establishment" comprising various elites; a group which believes that India has to be countered, nuclear weapons have secured Pakistan, Kashmir is the unfinished part of the partition plan, and large-scale social reforms are unacceptable, vocal Muslim nationalism is desirable but Islamism is not; Washington should not be trusted but should be taken maximum advantage of.