| Prophets and Princes: Saudi Arabia from Muhammad to the Present Contributor(s): Weston, Mark (Author) |
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ISBN: 0470182571 ISBN-13: 9780470182574 Publisher: Trade Paper Press OUR PRICE: $31.50 Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats Published: July 2008 Annotation: A balanced, entertaining, and complete history of Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia is the economic and spiritual center of the Middle East, the source of one fourth of the world's oil, the cradle of Islam, a key American ally, and the birthplace of Osama bin Laden. Most books on Saudi Arabia focus on current events and give short shrift to the long history that is the key to understanding the Saudis. Prophets and Princes begins with the birth of Muhammad in 570, but half of the book is a revealing portrait of Saudi Arabia today. Mark Weston (Armonk, NY), a former Visiting Scholar at the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies in Riyadh, has been a lawyer for ABC Television and a journalist for ABC News. His articles have been published in the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Los Angeles Times. He is the author of the acclaimed Giants of Japan: The Lives of Japan's Greatest Men and Women (978-1-56836-324-0). |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - History | Middle East - General |
| Dewey: 953.8 |
| LCCN: 2007035542 |
| Physical Information: 2" H x 6.5" W x 9.3" (2.20 lbs) 640 pages |
| Themes: - Cultural Region - Middle East - Cultural Region - Arab World |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Saudi Arabia: oil-rich, devoutly Muslim, and a vital ally To many in the West, Saudi Arabia is easy to criticize. It is the birthplace of Osama bin Laden and fifteen of the nineteen 9/11 hijackers. Saudi women are not permitted to drive, work with men, or travel without a man's permission. Prior to 9/11, the Saudis sent millions of dollars abroad to schools that taught Muslim extremism and to charities that turned out to be fronts for al-Qaeda. In Prophets and Princes, a highly respected scholar who has lived in Saudi Arabia contends that despite these serious shortcomings, the kingdom is still America's most important ally in the Middle East, a voice for moderation toward Israel, and a nation with a surprising ability to make many of the economic and cultural changes necessary to adjust to modern realities. Author Mark Weston offers an objective and balanced history of the only nation on earth named after its ruling family. Drawing on interviews with many Saudi men and women, Weston portrays a complex society in which sixty percent of Saudi Arabia's university students are women, and citizens who seek a constitutional monarchy can petition the king without fear of reprisal. Filled with new and underreported information about the most controversial aspects of life in Saudi Arabia, Prophets and Princes is a must-read for anyone interested in the Middle East, oil, Islam, or the war on terror.. |