Long before America existed and the first barrel of oil was taken from the ground there was trouble in the Middle East. Here are some books on the subject. Text from DJCline.com.
The Rise And Fall Of Paradise: When Arabs And Jews Built A Kingdom In Spain
By Elmer Bendiner
For a brief period Christians, Muslims and Jews lived in harmony in Medieval Spain. They exchanged ideas that later built the foundation for the Renaissance. Eventually fundamentalists of all sorts took over and began killing each other. A lesson for tolerance. Text from DJCline.com.
The Knights Templar
By Stephen Howarth
If you liked The Da Vinci Code you will like this history of the Crusades and its aftermath. Military adventures in the Middle East have unintended consequences. Text from DJCline.com.
What Went Wrong: Western Impact and Middle Eastern Response
by Bernard Lewis
Apparently lots of things went wrong. Lewis covers everything from the status of women to the lack of clocks and printing presses. Some people in the region during the sixteenth century used to blame the Mongols for their misfortune. It is very good at documenting what went wrong but offers no answers about how to get it right. Text from DJCline.com.
The Decline And Fall Of The Ottoman Empire
By Alan Palmer
The Middle East has always had troubles and this book tries to tell you the Ottoman part of it. Most people think Ottomans and think of furniture. Some day in the far future people will think American and think of cheese. Such is the way of all empires. Text from DJCline.com.
The Prize: The Epic Quest For Oil, Money And Power
By Daniel Yergin
Oil is now over one hundred forty dollars a barrel. If you want to know how we got into this mess I recommend Yergin’s book. It gives a detailed account of the early days with Rockefeller in the Titusville Pennsylvania oil fields to the Gulf War. A fuel originally used for rural illumination was almost destroyed by the introduction of electric lights but was saved by the automobile. Let’s hope future alternatives cause less trouble.Text from DJCline.com.
Eastward To Tartary: Travels In The Balkans, The Middle East, And The Caucasus
By Robert D. Kaplan
A writer travels from Budapest, Hungary to Merv, Turkmenistan. Things get odder and more troubled the farther east he goes. The Silk Road can be a dangerous place and there are lots of old feuds now mixed with oil and nuclear weapons. The result is a war torn toxic wasteland.
It gives a great perspective on a troubled region. Text from DJCline.com.
Copyright 2008 DJ Cline All rights reserved.
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