The Shah's Last Ride (Paperback)

~ William Shawcross (Author) "January 16, 1979, Mehrabad Airport, Teheran..." (more)
Key Phrases: subphrenic abscess, United States, New York, Reza Shah (more...)

Product Details

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Touchstone (October 15, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 067168745X
• ISBN-13: 978-0671687458
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #467,084 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An excellent, balanced account, October 12, 2004

By	jmm "jmm1103" (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews

Shawcross is an excellent observer and journalist of international politics. His account of the Shah's final days is balanced, interesting, and clearly written. While it does provide considerable background on the recent (as of the book's publication) and longer-term history of Iran, that truly is background. Issues like the Ayatollah Khomeini's consolidation of power, and the hostage crisis, are treated only peripherally to the extent they are relevant to the strange odyssey on which the Shah embarked. There is, for example, for more information about the "political" bickering among the many physcians retained to treat the Shah's cancer than about American and international efforts to obtain the release of the hostages.
If you are looking for a book that provides a detailed analysis of the rise of the Iranian theocracy or the hostage crisis, I'm sure there are better-suited books out there. Taken on its terms, however, Shawcross' book is excellent.