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A review by pattmayne
Days of God: The Revolution in Iran and its Consequences by James Buchan
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).