Customer Reviews

What Every American Should Know About the Middle East

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

I've struggled to find a basically non-biased book on Middle East history that is written in a casual style. Reading this book is like having a conversation with a friend. Overall, I found this book is a big help in understanding our current day politics. This book should not be your only source of information, but it is a nice place to start.

Rossi's exposition into the Middle East is hardly expository in nature- while her discussions are thorough and she does a remarkable job of covering both a crash course in the politics of every Middle Eastern state (Oman and Jordan were particularly fun reads, and I learned a lot about 'hypothetical development projects' in Dubai that recently made major headlines) and a thematic overview of major tensions in the region. Sadly, a lot of her analysis comes down to the same basic points:
1) America is dominated by a neo-conservative conspiracy that is both blood and jew thirsty- rightly so, Rossi blames a lot of the region's problems on a Western foreign policy hellbent on pursuing stable access to energy resources and/or fulfilling a Zionist Christian belief that populating the Middle East with Jewish citizens will lead to the second coming of the messiah. The point is well articulated early in the text, but gets redundant as she KEEPS REFERRING TO IT IN ALMOST EVERY CHAPTER, and in some cases, reexplains the foundations of her argument in the same terms.
2) Religious divides are problematic, though no one really knows why- Rossi does an excellent job deciphering the various sects of Islam (I learned what makes a Sunni different than a Shia, for example, and it has a lot to do with the line of ascensions for Muslim prophets in the 600s). What she doesn't explain is how these religious tensions manifest into new conflicts and why anyone continues to care about these tensions today. Rossi also blames a lot of problems in the region on the 1979 Iranian revolution, but needs to do a better job specifically linking the revolution's unique manifestations in each country. One of the ironic weaknesses of the text is that because Rossi blames problems in many countries on similar factors and describes them in similar language, the countries quickly blend together. She should be doing a stronger job emphasizing what makes the nations distinct so that the region doesn't look like one big quagmire.
3) Everybody hates Israel- easily half of the book covers Middle Eastern history and politics based on a lens that assumes the only thing the country has to do with its time is worry about when Israel will invade, why Israel is expanding settlements in the West Bank, why Israel is the only nation in the region with a nuclear weapon, etc... While I appreciate the book is written for an American audience, I think we already understand this point.

It's a good read and if you need to brush up on (or learn for the first time) the politics of the region, I say go for it! If you're looking for something more comprehensive, go elsewhere.

The information provided in this book is very good, and explains a lot about the middle east in a user-friendly way. However, the bias against the U.S. and Israel is not very friendly. And even borders on hatred. Makes me question what the author was paid to portray rogue entities with sub-par moral beliefs in such a good light. Seems like the author has a respectable background in journalism, working for high-name companies, but come on. Suffice to say, I give 3 stars based on the in-depth information content and user-friendly layout of the book.

I have never written a review, but after the first 10 pages, as well as bits and pieces here and there, I'm declairing the book bin bound, before I get any more angry.... and thought I'd save anyone interested in reading the book some time, money and blood pressure issues....

Page after page of I hate American politics because... Page after page of I hate Bush and Cheney because... Occassionally an 'I'd like to slap Ahmedinijad' or a Sadaam 'gassed "some" citizens' (heaven forbid any facts on why some of the middle eastern leaders are a problem to their citizens and the world), but the author will take her time documenting every liberal theory about Middle Eastern politics and mentions Halliburton and how the US has wronged the Middle East at every corner.

Even if she's right on some of this stuff, and she well may be, the book is written with such a bias that there's no way this should be in the non-fiction isle; maybe non-fiction or philospohy.... Shame, because the topic needs authors that can write well, in a book of this format....

I was really optimistic about this book. Glancing through the contents, it looked like Ms Rossi had something to say, which is a good alternative to generic information, and her acknowledgements section showed she had put real time and effort into researching, writing, and publishing this work. Unfortunately almost all that you will get from this book is badly organized angry rants about American foreign policy and other Western meddling in these countries. I am plenty critical and upset about these issues too, but honestly the whining righteous attitude makes this book unreadable. Her information is accurate and definitely there were sections that educated me and even surprised me, but it has all been written before and better in more serious and definitive sources.
I'm fairly familiar with the Arab and Islamic world, and this text was surprisingly disappointing when I went to look for facts about a place I hadn't learned about yet. I met a few people from Kuwait here in the US and later picked up Rossi's book, thinking "Oh yeah, I don't actually know about Kuwait, let's check it out..." All she had to offer were things that pertained to their interactions with Iraq and intervention from the US, plus a little about their oil economy and nanny state which actually are important. Even though she points out that they are a somewhat unique though small nation, she never really describes what sets them apart from other Arabs in a land where subtleties make a world of difference. I swear she talks more about stealth bombers than Kuwaitis.
I can't reccomend this book. I'm probably going to just cut out a few pictures or something then recycle it so other people don't have to be bored or misled by it.

I chose this book for a quick history of the middle east before diving in deeper. What I found was a somewhat interesting overview of history that gave me an idea of the players in the Middle East and an appreciation for the contributions made by this area of the world. What I also found was an extremely leftist point of view that seemed to veer off track and harp on issues time and again. This was a tough read and I'm sorry the author didn't choose to continue with the tone that she set in the first chapters.

I thought this book would offer basic facts and history of the Middle East, I was incorrect. Right in the preface it becomes clear that Ms. Rossi has no idea about what she is talking about. Everything in this book is biased against America. Even the back cover about what to expect in this book reads, "Why the United States is turning the Persian Gulf into an armed fortress." After researching the author, I found that she holds no formal education in geography, politics, culture, history, etc. She is a journalist, an independent journalist, that does not even know what "jihad" is. Furthermore, just look at the titles of her other works, such as "What Every American Should Know About Who's Really Running America." Her works are just her opinion, nothing useful.

This book, however, does provide very basic information about several states, but all this information is available online from more trusted sources, and constantly being updated.

I strongly recommend that you find a book written by someone who actually understands the Middle East.

For the veracity of the information set forth in this book, or more information on the Palestine/Israel issue, read Bennie Morris, Tom Segev or Neve Gordon... all Israelis. Or check the CBS News story

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/01/23/60minutes/main4749723.shtml

Melissa Rossi is a left-wing version of Ann Coulter: spewing hate-filled, unsubstantiated venom that serves no purpose. If you are on her side regarding Middle East issues, you will find little to support your stance. If you are against her, well, she'll just make you mad. The book is full of overgeneralizations couched in glib, slang-ridden language. I object to this book less for its stance on the issues than for its lack of substance.

One reviewer said this book was like a conversation with a friend, and consequently gave it a high rating. I agree that it is like a conversation with a friend, but I therefore give it a low rating. When you talk with friends, you tolerate slang, bias, lack of substantiation; you're just chatting, after all. When you read a book, however, the standard is much higher. The language should be more formal, assertions require well-researched support, and personal bias has no place. Look elsewhere for information that lets you decide for yourself about these volatile topics.

This is the most readable book on the subject. Rossi has an excellent sense of humor and this book is thoroughly entertaining throughout.

But that is not the only reason why I like it. I like it because it is quite comprehensive. Do not be fooled by the informal language. This book is very well researched and Rossi backs up her opinions with facts, figures and references.

One thing that I found particularly impressive was how well Rossi understands the dynamics of the Shia/Sunni politics in the region and does an excellent job of explaining it.