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guinness74's review
4.0
Per FTC regulations, I received this book as a Goodreads First Reads giveaway.
I think one of the most incredible things about this book is that this history has happened in my lifetime. I grew up despising Khomeini and Iran because they hated America. As with most things, time has eased this tension, and even though I'm still not a huge fan of Khomeini, I see through his book that he merely played a role in history and, by and large, he seemed mostly an unwilling participant, albeit a significant one. Buchan has done an outstanding job in his description of events throughout history that led to the Iranian Revolution. I now have a clearer understanding of events, what happened, who was involved, etc. Only 4 stars because there was a section where the "cast of characters" became simply too entangled and lengthy to remember who was who. Anyway, I recommend this book to anyone who lived through this era, and certainly to people who "hate Iran."
I think one of the most incredible things about this book is that this history has happened in my lifetime. I grew up despising Khomeini and Iran because they hated America. As with most things, time has eased this tension, and even though I'm still not a huge fan of Khomeini, I see through his book that he merely played a role in history and, by and large, he seemed mostly an unwilling participant, albeit a significant one. Buchan has done an outstanding job in his description of events throughout history that led to the Iranian Revolution. I now have a clearer understanding of events, what happened, who was involved, etc. Only 4 stars because there was a section where the "cast of characters" became simply too entangled and lengthy to remember who was who. Anyway, I recommend this book to anyone who lived through this era, and certainly to people who "hate Iran."
pattmayne's review
4.0
A beautiful book about the personalities and power struggles that led up to the violent revolution that turned Iran from a semi-progressive monarchy into an anti-social Islamic regime.
It's a tragic story, but it's really informative for anyone who wants to understand more about the Middle East and Islamic power structures. It explains the political transformations from the 1800's up to the present date, focusing mainly on the two-generation Pahlavi monarchy who made Iran a more stable country, but then lost it all to Khomeini and his extremists.
I was amazed at the level of detail in this book. There are so many personalities, so many groups struggling for power, that it can be a daunting read. But the author is very sympathetic to the desires, strengths, and weaknesses of the people involved. He's a British author who lived in Iran during some of the most important events, so he has an insiders' perspective AND a Western perspective.
The only drawback to the story was the thick level of detail, which was sometimes like a wall of information. Still, all that detail is useful, and the research is impressive. (The citations alone are a little novella LoL).
It's a tragic story, but it's really informative for anyone who wants to understand more about the Middle East and Islamic power structures. It explains the political transformations from the 1800's up to the present date, focusing mainly on the two-generation Pahlavi monarchy who made Iran a more stable country, but then lost it all to Khomeini and his extremists.
I was amazed at the level of detail in this book. There are so many personalities, so many groups struggling for power, that it can be a daunting read. But the author is very sympathetic to the desires, strengths, and weaknesses of the people involved. He's a British author who lived in Iran during some of the most important events, so he has an insiders' perspective AND a Western perspective.
The only drawback to the story was the thick level of detail, which was sometimes like a wall of information. Still, all that detail is useful, and the research is impressive. (The citations alone are a little novella LoL).
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