An Introduction to the Modern Middle East: History, Religion, Political Economy, Politics

by David S. Sorenson

Combining essential themes in the discipline of comparative politics with a country-by-country analysis, author David S. Sorenson provides a complete and accessible introduction to the modern Middle East. While emphasizing politics, the text dedicates separate chapters specifically to the history, religions, and political economy of the region. These introductory chapters together constitute an important thematic overview and orientation for each of the book’s individual country chapters, including countries of the Persian (Arabian) Gulf, the Eastern Mediterranean, and North Africa. In each country chapter, a brief political history is followed by discussions of democratization, religious politics, women’s issues, civil society, economic development, privatization, and foreign relations. Throughout the book, “Images”-short vignettes based on the author’s personal observations during his extensive travels in the Middle East-offer readers a chance for personal reflection on the topics discussed in each chapter.

Genres: History, Middle East, Nonfiction

536 pages, Paperback

First published December 24, 2007

Reviews

[Tommy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book offers a comprehensive introduction to the modern Middle East, and I appreciated several aspects of its approach. Rather than isolating the discussion of women's rights to a single section, the author thoughtfully integrated the situation of women into each individual country case study. Also the extensive further reading lists at the end of each chapter are a great resource for anyone looking to dig deeper into specific topics. I also found the book's structure, which begins with a regional overview and important concepts before moving into country-specific case studies, to be very effective for building a foundational understanding.

However, despite these strengths, I was significantly concerned by some apparent factual inaccuracies that, frankly, undermined my confidence in the book's overall reliability. Most notably, the complete lack of any meaningful discussion of the Nakba – referred to only as a brief "Palestinian exodus" – is a glaring omission in any introduction to this region's history. This omission was compounded by the book's phrasing around the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, such as stating that "Palestinians died" without any mention of civilian casualties, and describing the loss of the Golan Heights as "Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel" and the status of Jerusalem's Old City as simply being "under Israeli control," without acknowledging the ongoing Israeli occupation.

These omissions are particularly troubling in a book intended as an introduction. While the book provides a framework for understanding the region, the absence of crucial historical context and the seemingly deliberate downplaying of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict's complexities raise serious questions about the author's perspective and the book's overall objectivity.

[James Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid background on foundational history and strycture of middle east countries. Essential for understanding governments and peoples.