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Power, Faith, and Fantasy: America in the Middle East: 1776 to the Present
 

Power, Faith, and Fantasy: America in the Middle East: 1776 to the Present

by Michael B. Oren

The history of America's political, military, and intellectual involvement in the Middle East from George Washington to George W. Bush.

From the first cannonballs fired by American warships at North African pirates to the conquest of Falluja by the Marines—from the early American explorers who probed the sources of the Nile to the diplomats who strove for Arab-Israeli peace—the United... (read more)

Top tags: history,  middle east,  middle east history,  non-fiction,  nonfiction (all tags)

Readers

Groups

  • For the love of History Discussion Group
  • Cultures, Civilisation, History, Humans Discussion Group
  • Middle East Affairs Discussion Group

Other Reviews

Amazon Reviews (5)
 

Most Helpful Reviews

Liked It

Steve
  • Rated 4 stars

“Sweeping review of US involvement in the Middle East, from the founding of the US to the present. Our very first international crisis was trying to deal with the Barbary Pirates--terrorists who found refuge with certain Middle Eastern countries--and ever since then, we've been struggling to deal with cultural differences, religious differences, and our own conflicting visions based on our faith and fantasies. From Hollywood imagery to missionary movements to political agendas--it's all there...”

Steve’s full review »
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Didn’t Like It

Nima G
  • Rated 2 stars

“not what you expect to read; quite orientalist in its view”

Nima G’s full review »
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Community:
  • Rated 4.041667 stars
Amazon:
  • Rated 4.666667 stars
  

Newest Comments

  • Stephen H

    stephen h said:

    “This book is completely engrossing. If you generally prefer fiction, I would recommend this book anyway as proving the old addage, "truth is stranger than fiction." In addition you'll bel exposed to an immense amount of information that will lead to a better understanding of why we are where we are today.”

    posted Friday, May 2 2008
  • Allisunni

    allisunni said:

    “This book covers American foreign policy towards the Middle East from 1776 to the present. I found the US centered narrative uninteresting since most Americans really didn't know anything about the Middle East. Oren spends a lengthy chapter on the religious fantasies of (seemingly) every evangelist missionary who traveled to the region in the 1800's, while ignoring the actual Middle East. I guess that's his fantasy angle. The book left me cold and longing for Bernard Lewis and some actual information on the Middle East.”

    posted Friday, March 7 2008 ( | view 1 reply )
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