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A World of Trouble: The White House and the Middle East--from the Cold War to the War on Terror Paperback – February 16, 2010

by Patrick Tyler (Author)

17 customer reviews

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A spellbinding narrative account of America in the Middle East that "reads almost like a thriller" (The Economist)

The Middle East is the beginning and the end of U.S. foreign policy: events there influence our alliances, make or break presidencies, govern the price of oil, and draw us into war. But it was not always so―and as Patrick Tyler shows in A World of Trouble, a thrilling chronicle of American misadventures in the region. The story of American presidents' dealings there is one of mixed motives, skulduggery, deceit, and outright foolishness, as well as of policymaking and diplomacy.

Tyler draws on newly opened presidential archives to dramatize the approach to the Middle East across U.S. presidencies from Eisenhower to George W. Bush. He takes us into the Oval Office and shows how our leaders made momentous decisions; at the same time, the sweep of this narrative―from the Suez crisis to the Iran hostage crisis to George W. Bush's catastrophe in Iraq―lets us see the big picture as never before. Tyler tells a story of presidents being drawn into the affairs of the region against their will, being kept in the dark by local potentates, being led astray by grasping subordinates, and making decisions about the internal affairs of countries they hardly understand. Above all, he shows how each president has managed to undo the policies of his predecessor, often fomenting both anger against America on the streets of the region and confusion at home.

A World of Trouble is the Middle East book we need now: compulsively readable, free of cant and ideology, and rich in insight about the very human challenges a new president will face as he or she tries to restore America's standing in the region.

A World of Trouble: The White House and the Middle East--from the Cold War to the War on Terror

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this epic, remarkably readable history of U.S. involvement in the Middle East from Eisenhower to Bush II, Washington Post reporter Tyler uses an up-close, journalistic style to depict the power struggles and compromises that have defined the past half-century. Tyler focuses on key turning points in U.S.–Middle East relations and documents the conversations and real-time decision-making processes of the presidents, cabinet members and other key figures. Readers are treated to an intimate view of Eisenhower's careful, steady diplomacy during the Suez crisis, Kissinger's egocentric and fateful decision to fully arm Israel in the October war of 1973 while Nixon struggled through the Watergate scandal, and the tangled web of communication and intentional deceit during the Reagan administration that led to the Iran-Contra scandal. Tyler makes the issues and relationships clear without resorting to oversimplification or ideological grandstanding, and his journalistic instincts steer him toward direct quotation and telling anecdotes rather than generalization. Readers in the market for an examination of how leadership has embroiled the U.S. in the Middle East are well-advised to consult this riveting text. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

“An authoritative, richly detailed account of American policy in the Middle East . . . [Tyler] writes vividly, allowing the reader access to White House meetings, huddles in the corridors of power, seats at international summits.” ―Adam LeBor, The New York Times

“Patrick Tyler . . . has written an engaging but idiosyncratic account of U.S. interactions with the Middle East from 1956 onward.” ―Steven Simon, The Washington Post

“Tyler documents not the interest of Israel but the cost in treasure and blood that the United States and the Middle East peoples have paid during decades without a coherent US policy in the region. He shows vividly the damage done by Israeli and Arab leaders alike in persistently bringing too little, too late, to the peace process.” ―Charles A. Radin, The Boston Globe

“Tyler is forthright in a way American journalists usually are not. . . . [A World of Trouble] completes a formidable charge sheet against the occupants of the White House over the last half century which is, in its page-by-page human detail, as gripping as it is depressing.” ―Martin Woollacott, The Guardian (UK)

“Rich in irony and incident, Patrick Tyler's history of the White House and the Middle East would make instructive reading for the latest occupant of the Oval Office. . . . A lucid and even-handed introduction to a deeply contentious subject.” ―Dominic Sandbrook, The Sunday Times (UK)

See all Editorial Reviews

Product details

Paperback: 656 pages
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux; First Edition edition (February 16, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0374532001
ISBN-13: 978-0374532000
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 1.4 x 8.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 17 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,217,369 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1064 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > International & World Politics > Diplomacy
- #2080 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > International & World Politics > Middle Eastern
- #4947 in Books > History > Middle East

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I look forward to reading this book every day,

December 4, 2014

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

What fascinating facts regarding all that goes on in our country and the international events and the people.

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Bassel Jounblat

October 31, 2014

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Beautifully written.

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May 9, 2010

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

The book arrived in terriffic condition, and arrived sooner than expected. The seller is true to their word regarding quality and follow through. I will use them again in the future....very happy/

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Important read for bkgrd against which to view current events

February 14, 2017

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

Giving an excellent view of past problematic events and how they were handled - this is an Important resource for knowledge against which to judge how events, as they are unfolding and will continue to, are handled. The past is prologue but - it is also a critical measuring guide.

0Comment One person found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?

Middle East Equals Trouble

June 13, 2011

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

Patrick Tyler in A World of Trouble has created a highly engaging though more than depression ladden analysis of U.S. policy within the Middle East from Eisenhower through the end of the George W. Bush administration. No administration comes across as sterling silver and most of them have either made things worse or kept around a status quo that just brought more problems than solutions. Where I would usually asail a book for leaning to the left or right in matters of Middle Eastern policy there really is no ideological ground to land on when I say that both parties have stunk up the joint as thousands of citizens throughout the Middle East through programs of autocratic crackdowns from U.S. and Soviet supported leaders to programs of military intervention or non military intervention as the case may be during the post Cold War era.

0Comment One person found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?

Gary Hainsworth

Holds Back No Punches

December 8, 2012

Format: Paperback

There was an episode of the HBO series "Hung" called "The Middle East is Complicated". I'd say that pretty much sums the place and this books approach to exploring this complexity very well. This book goes into detail about the history of The Middle East, explores the strenghths and weaknesses of those active in it. Unlike most histories of the region and the eras pertinent to them this book takes no obvious side. In my opinion, it is bi-partisan in the truest sense. Unlike most books, which more or less attempt to assign blame to one particulair person, ideology, nation, what-have-you--be it a problem with Democrats, Republicans; Arabs, Jews; America and The Soviet Union--this says everyone is responsible for the quagmire more or less [my words not the books]. If politics is a dance this book asserts it takes two to tango [again my words not Patrick Tyler's]. Would I recommend this book? Yes. Would I buy it? Not on paperback or hardcopy. I would buy it on Kindle though. I also recommend you "From Time Immemorial".

0Comment One person found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?

Read this book if you want to understand "A world of trouble"

March 31, 2017

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

Great book. Worth a second read

0Comment One person found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?

No president is spared

February 22, 2009

Format: Hardcover

Patrick Tyler's approach is dispassionate and concise, and it's clear he has done his homework. Americans who have any interest in the Middle East must read this book or their understanding of their own leaders will be incomplete.

The only president who comes out looking OK is Eisenhower. The rest of them are a sad lot and a couple of them were outright disasters, and Tyler doesn't care how politically popular they are or how much trouble he is likely to get in from their apologists. His sole purpose in this book is to offer the reader a clear-eyed, non-partisan view of America's top officeholder. I recommend this book to the smartest people I know.

0Comment 16 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?

Most recent customer reviews

I didn't buy this book on Amazon (yet), but I read it for an International Relations course. It's completely fascinating and a page turner. Loved it.

Published on July 10, 2015

Absolutely Brilliant

I have always found the Arab-Israeli conflict confusing; I never fully understood the genesis of the conflict and why these two Abrahamic people were always at each other's...Read more

Published on October 18, 2011

Difficult subject to be completely objective...

This is an excellent review of US relations in the Middle East. While I thought Tyler was generally even handed, I felt he was more sympathetic to the Palestinians regarding the...Read more

Published on June 19, 2009

Strangers in a Strange Land

"A World of Trouble" is a history of the US involvement in the Middle East, which offers an accessible and insightful, if overlong and somewhat uneven, introduction to the story...The Much Too Promised Land: America's Elusive Search for Arab-Israeli PeaceSix Days of War: June 1967 and the Making of the Modern Middle EastThe Case for Israel Read more

Published on June 8, 2009

Does not deliver. But still worth the reading.

While I hoped this book would provide critical insights into the handling of the middle-east by the different American Presidents, it failed to deliver.Read more

Published on February 10, 2009

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