Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

اليماني: القصة من الداخل

Rate this book
For over two decades, Sheikh Ahmed Zaki Yamani was one of the most famous, most recognizable and most powerful men on earth. As the petroleum minister for Saudi Arabia and the leading force behind OPEC, he was the biggest player in the world's biggest business - oil.


His is a story of ultimate political power, of the Middle East, of the "oil weapon" and the embargoes, of a brilliant young Saudi lawyer who emerged from the desert sands to walk comfortably through the halls of power in Washington DC, in London, in Paris, and throughout much of the rest of the world.


It is also the story of a man who, in 1975, faced sudden death not once but twice. His mentor and lifelong support, the legendary King Faisal, was shot dead at his feet; and nine months later Yamani himself was kidnapped by the terrorist who was known as, "Carlos the Jackal," only narrowly escaping with his life.


Co-starring Richard Nixon, Henry Kissinger, Margaret Thatcher, Yassir Arafat, Saddam Hussein, Colonel Qaddafi, Jimmy Carter, the CIA, the Shah of Iran, Ronald Reagan and Nat King Cole, this is the up close and personal story of a man who strode across the world's stage a superstar in the media, was heralded as "the best friend the West had in the Middle East," and yet became the face of the oil embargoes that threatened to cripple Western economies.


A brilliant and enormously charming man who could move markets with a few simple words, Sheikh Yamani earned the respect of political leaders in the West while suffering the jealousy of kings and princes back home. His sudden and abrupt firing in October 1986 made front page headlines throughout the world.


Written in 1988 with the unprecedented cooperation of Sheikh Yamani - meeting with him regularly over the course of a year in five countries - plus hundreds of interviews with the people who knew him best, Jeffrey Robinson's gripping and intimate account opens a door to the very heart of one of the world's most controversial and fascinating statesmen.


Heralded in the West as "the best book ever written about the oil business," and banned in Saudi Arabia when it was first published, this #1 international bestseller is now, finally, available as an eBook for the first time.


*** "A sizzler" - Today


*** "Bestselling writer Jeffrey Robinson has taken the lid off Yamani's life" - Sunday Express


*** "Rich in entertaining anecdote" - Financial Times


*** "Superb" - The Sunday Times


*** "Robinson provides the reader with a portrait of a man who, while claiming he was nothing more than a simple Bedouin, became a deft politician and media personality indelibly associated in the public mind with the rise in OPEC economic power and Saudi Arabia's leading position in global oil production" - Washington Report


*** "In crisp, straightforward sentences, Robinson describes how Ahmed Zaki Yamani's close relationship with King Faisal, and his own urbane intelligence, made him the dominant industry figure worldwide" - Publishers Weekly


*** "Yamani emerges from the book as a man of intelligence and charm, deeply devoted to his family and his Muslim faith, who rose from a Mecca boyhood to become a jet-setting world figure and custodian of one-third of the non-communist world's oil" - Houston Post


*** "Riveting, fast paced" - Globe and Mail


*** "Robinson weaves a fascinating tale" - San Francisco Chronicle


*** "A colorful, well rounded biography." - Philadelphia Inquirer


*** "Oil gagsters were referring to the hot book as "the OPEC version of the Andy Warhol Diaries" - Liz Smith


*** "A Fascinating portrait of this master politician" - Wall Street Journal

490 pages, Paperback

First published March 15, 1988

27 people are currently reading
233 people want to read

About the author

Jeffrey Robinson

43 books25 followers

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
43 (34%)
4 stars
44 (35%)
3 stars
25 (20%)
2 stars
10 (8%)
1 star
3 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
Profile Image for عبد الله القصير.
435 reviews89 followers
July 11, 2017
المكتوب مبين من عنوانه! الكتاب قصة الوزير اليماني بوجهة نظر زكي يماني وبقلم المؤلف!
المؤلف قام بعمل جيد بتتبع قصة الوزير أحمد زكي يماني من صغره إلى تركه للوزارة. لكنه قالها كما يريد زكي يماني منه أن يقولها، فعلى طول القصة تسمع عن نضال الوزير وذكاء الوزير ونجاحات الوزير وحتى وسامة الوزير، لكن لا مجال للتحقيق الصحفي المستقل الذي يكتب ما لا يريد صاحب القصة ( أو صاحب اليخت في هذه الحالة :))
اليماني اشتهر خلال حرب ٧٣ وبعدها كوزير للنفط وقام خلالها بعمل جبار يشكر عليه، ثم قصة اختطافه من كارلوس الثعلب اضافة شيء من الأكشن للقصة. لكن اليماني صار عليه لغط كبير للغنى الفاحش الذي كان يعيشه هو، هنا المؤلف يريدنا أن نصدق أن الملايين هذه جاءت من ملك معروف بالاقتصاد.
عموما الكتاب يستحق القراءة وفيه معلومات جد مهمة لكن خذ بعين الاعتبار أن المؤلف هنا يكتب وجهة نظر الوزير حصرًا.


ملاحظة: في النسخة الإلكترونية الإنجليزية، المؤلف كتب مقدمة طويلة لصداقته العميقة مع زكي يماني، حتى أنه وصل حد الهيام بيخت زكي يماني الذي ركبه مع اليماني أكثر من مرة.
Profile Image for Mai Alsharif مي الشريف.
258 reviews263 followers
August 18, 2017
قرأت كتاب علي النعيمي و من ثم بدأت بقراءة هذا الكتاب . و الحقيقة أنه لم يستهويني و كنت أحيانا اقرأه عَل الأمل الانتهاء منه سريعًا، أسلوب أحمد زكي يماني في سرد بعض الأحداث و تفخيم "الأنا" لم تستهويني خاصة بعد قراءة كتاب علي النعيمي الممتع. لا أنكر أن الكتاب زادني معرفة عن تلك الحقبة التاريخية و لكن لا اعتبره من الكتب الممتعة.
Profile Image for Abdullah Nasser.
18 reviews1 follower
October 23, 2013
الكتاب من نوع السير الذاتية وان كان اكثر تركيزة على فترة تولي يماني وزارة النفط
اعجبني في الكتاب سرد العديد من الاحداث والمعلومات عن تلك الفترة مما جعلني افهم سبب رغبة منتجي النفط في الحفاظ على اسعار متدنية للنفط

كذلك وضح الكتاب فترة حكم الملك فيصل واحداث الشرق الاوسط والعديد من المواقف التي تلقي الضوء على فترة السبعينات والصراع العربي الاسرائيلي

الكتاب جميل ولكن يحتاج الى تركيز لاحتواءة على العديد من اسماء الشخصيات في تلك الفترة مما قد يفقد القارئ تركيزة
Profile Image for Sarah Al-Otaibi.
109 reviews12 followers
June 26, 2015
اولاً: الكتاب الذي قراءته ليس السيرة الذاتية ليماني "اليماني القصة من الداخل"
بل هو يماني؛ الكتاب الذي حاول يماني منع صدوره.
وهو مثل ملحق يذكر فيه الكاتب قصة كتابته لهذا الكتاب وكيف حاول يماني منعه وحاول اخرون تضليله . اعتقد انه يعتبر ملخص لا اهم ما اثار ضجة في الكتاب .

وقد أعود لسيرة يماني لاحقاً
Profile Image for Nezar.
36 reviews
October 19, 2017
Good book about a period we heard about it. This period was very busy with many events. It is good book to see things from other prospective.
Profile Image for Ahmad Moshrif.
Author 8 books551 followers
July 24, 2015
Finally ... I've finished this amazing rich biography. Too many technical details, and too many shocking information for young saudi like me.

وأخيرا انتهيت من قراءة سيرة السيد الوالد الشيخ احمد زكي يماني، كنت أتمنى أن لا أحزن أمام الكثير من تفاصيلها المحيرة خصوصا لشاب سعودي عاش في السعودية مثلي. تعلمت الكثير وأوجعتني السياسة أكثر بتفاصيلها. كُتب هذا الكتاب عندما بلغت عامين (١٩٨٨) وكأن الكاتب كان يعي أن كلماته ستستمر سنوات طويلة قادمة ليقرأه شخص ما في ٢٠١٥.

تعلمت منه أننا عشنا في خانة القوة امام العالم أجمع في الماضي، وأننا نواجه تحديات أصعب هذه الأيام وفي المستقبل، مع كل صفحة اقرأها ازداد دهشة لكل ما حصل في مملكتنا والعالم قبل مولدي، وخصوصا برفقة شخصية عظيمة كالشيخ احمد يماني، لعبة البترول والسياسة عندما تجتمع ... تَخَلَّق مزيجا من النعم الخليطة بمواجع تؤثر بشكل مباشر على حياتنا.

اسأل الله كل خير لمملكتنا وكل الصحة والعافية للشيخ يماني
Profile Image for Faisal.
164 reviews17 followers
July 9, 2018
للأسف الكاتب لم يكن حياديا وقد بالغ بشكل كبير في تصوير اليماني كشخصية خارقة بينما هو في واقع الأمر مجرد وزير يأتمر بأمر من هو أعلى منه ، له من الإنجازات ما يشكر عليها لكن أيضاً له من السلبيات ما تجعلك تطرح التساؤلات عليها ،
كذلك الترجمة سيئة للحد ان المترجم ترجم بعض المفردات بشكل حرفي فكلمة "الحجيلان" تم ترجمها ب "الحجيليان".
Profile Image for Basheir Hashim.
2 reviews1 follower
February 16, 2020
Countries with huge oil reserves are eager to expand their market share, so higher prices are not always what they seek but rather the elusive search for the optimal price point. This is complicated further by the need to keep oil a competitive energy source, not pricing it aggressively to a point that makes renewable and other sources more competitive

Countries with small proven research wants to rush as much oil as possible into the market, off their ground and into the market. The geological formations in some cases force them to do so, and as such they are always eager to push prices up

The Shah, in the 70s, and despite his strong alliance with the west thought that $100 price was fair. He believed that the west was getting too comfortable at those depressed prices that made for a very comfortable life style made possible by cheap energy from the middle east. He was always engaged in a fight with Yamani over OPEC pricing policy. The author even attribute a comment by the Shah's oil minister to the Saudi monarch as the final straw which made the king dismiss Yamani.

A sympathetic biography of an interesting man, who since retiring became more involved with cultural matters. The book paints a picture of how Yamani the politician found himself at the center of global geopolitics at a crucial time marked with upheavals and a sudden new found wealth.
Profile Image for Saad.
65 reviews
July 22, 2020
Wonderful tell all biography about one of the most consequential leaders in the oil industry during the 20th century. Mr Yamani who was a technocrat lawyer trained in US universities in the 50s got the important responsibility of managing Saudi Arabia's rise from territory reliant on royalties from US oil majors to owner of national oil company Aramco, as well as establishing and managing OPEC amidst the geopolitical challenges posed by national, regional and global challenges including all of US, Iran, Libya, Kissinger, Russia amongst others.

Yamani was also forefront in the long term belief and thinking to manage oil pricing in a way that the world remains reliant on petroleum instead of developing substitute technologies.

He had a gift to sense danger, read people's intentions and understand situations rapidly : this helped him last 25 years in an extremely volatile time, and politically difficult time including understanding Henry Kissinger, a person he did not trust, during latter's political maneuvers during oil embargo. His gift also allowed him to survive various assassination attempts, including:
-when targeted during Saudi king assassination
-kidnapping by Venezuelan terrorist Carlos.
Interesting intellectual technocrat that shaped the oil & gas industry as well know it today.
Profile Image for Mohammed Ali.
1 review1 follower
November 5, 2019
I have personal acquaintance with this great man as he is my dad's boss. I was fortunate enough to know is philanthropy side and has not seen a more generous man in my life. although these are not mentioned in the book. i know majority of the content as my dad used to tell me. I give the book on this legend a solid 5 stars
1 review
May 13, 2020
In-depth analysis on decision making

The book provides in how a technocrate can lead an organisation and progress dramatically with time. But on the other hand to be a politician and a technocrate at the same time is always a tug of war. Sheikh Yamami showed the world how a simple man from Arabia can be a powerful iconic figure in his world of business.
Profile Image for mr x85.
217 reviews15 followers
June 13, 2018
كتاب اقتصادي/سياسي
حتى وإن رغب المؤلف ان لايكون كذلك
صعب انك تتكلم عن الاقتصاد وماتذكر السياسه
لا ارى فيه صراحه
فيه تجني كثير
كنت معجب بـ "يماني" كثيراً قبل قراءة الكتاب
2 reviews
July 2, 2019
Enjoyed the story, but not the writing.
Profile Image for Abdullah Almuslem.
493 reviews50 followers
July 31, 2015
I learned a good deal about the economics of the oil industry in this book with very entertaining stories. Yamani had a very interesting life during his time being a minister of oil in Saudi Arabia the biggest exporter of oil in the world.

For those who are looking to understand the Oil price cycle and the history of the oil war... This book is a must for you
Profile Image for Cameron.
9 reviews13 followers
July 17, 2008
A fascinating portrait of one of the architects of OPEC. A must read for anyone who wants to know the human aspects of energy policy.
17 reviews3 followers
February 5, 2015
ممتع إلى حد ما. الترجمة مقبولة لكن ليست جيدة.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.