Ahmadinejad: The Secret History of Iran's Radical Leader (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"A critical and revealing biography of Iran's controversial president."--New York Review of Books

Product Description

As Iran's nuclear program accelerates, all eyes are on the blacksmith's son who could have his finger on the trigger. Who is Mahmoud Ahmadinejad? What drives him? To whom, if anyone, does he answer? Internationally acclaimed Iranian journalist Kasra Naji has spent years interviewing Ahmadinejad's friends, family, and colleagues to tell for the first time the true story of how he came to power. What emerges in this riveting account, featuring never before published color photographs, is a picture of a man who is much more of a force to be reckoned with than the caricatures offered up so far suggest. While Naji documents Ahmadinejad's often strange behavior, he also shows him to be full of complex contradictions: a man gripped by apocalyptic beliefs, yet capable of switching spiritual allegiance in the quest for power. A man tough enough to fight street battles in the name of Ayatollah Khomeini, crude enough to invite the German chancellor to join him in an anti-Jewish alliance, yet sophisticated enough to win the support of the all-powerful Revolutionary Guard. Kasra Naji takes us inside the shadowy council chambers of Tehran, and shows us the plots, passions, and personalities that will influence Ahmadinejad's next move, while the world waits with bated breath.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 312 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press; 1 edition (May 12, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520256638
• ISBN-13: 978-0520256637
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #250,302 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read , September 7, 2008

By	Potkin "Azarmehr" (UK) - See all my reviews

This is not a detailed biography with ins and outs of Ahmadi-nejad's entire personal life story up to now, if you want to read a biography of Ahmadi-nejad you may have to wait until something like that is written some time in the future. However, if you want to be updated with a factual account of what is going on in Iran now and who runs the Islamic Republic, reading this book is a must!

It is one of the best explanations I have read in English on what Islamic Republic elections are about ....
http://azarmehr.blogspot.com/2008/09/ahmadinejad-by-kasra-naji.html

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great introduction, August 29, 2008

By	Dark Confidant - See all my reviews

This work was a great introduction into the known life of Iran's Ahmadinejad. This was my first book on the subject and once I finished the reading I felt that I knew that much more about Iran's leader that is under much scrutiny from other world powers. If anyone wants to gain insight into present day Iran and Ahmadinejad, this book is a must. The book was well written and presented clearly. You'll not only learn about Ahmadinejad, but also of those that helped shape his political ideas. The title is relatively cheap compared to some of the other books available on the subject and is a very interesting read.