Patrick seale, president hafez alassad\\s official biographer, predicted this week that syria and israel would conclude a comprehensive peace agreement within one year. Riad elsolh and the makers of the modern middle east. Patrick seale, syria specialist and former observer correspondent. Seale said that there was still a slice of the population. Asad of syria 9780520069763 by seale and a great selection of similar new, used and collectible books available now at great prices. A gun for hire, the struggle for syria, asad of syria. Seale deftly balances syrian political intrigue with the effects of outside influences. Patrick seale, who has died aged 83 after suffering from brain cancer. Patrick seales struggle for syria should be one of the first books anyone interested in syria or the middle east reads.
The perfect book to get this reader on the right track for an ma in middle east studies. His history of the syrian republics first years depicted a fragile, weak state, torn by. But a strategy based on western intervention will only prolong syria s agony but a strategy based on western intervention will. Patrick abram seale 7 may 1930 11 april 2014 was a belfastborn british journalist and. The very best book for all this is probably patrick seale s sadly out of print the struggle for syria.
Seales great strength is his ability to explain the confusing. Asad by patrick seale paperback university of california press. Seale, a middle eastern specialist and a journalist. This book helps to explain the historical foundation behind the crisis in syria today. The struggle for the middle east, and the struggle for arab independence. The first book explored syrias turbulent postsecond world war years. The civil war in lebannon is well covered in the book and represents something of a proxy war according to seale. Npr stories about patrick seale a syrian book vendor waits for customers at his street stall in the old city of damascus, syria, on sept. This is a book in the finest tradition of investigative scholarship. The final part of the book deals with the modernisation of syria, such as electricity installed throughout the countryside, tvs, radios, refrigerators. Patrick seale is a british writer and journalist specializing in the middle east.
Seale was the first middle east specialist to give us a comprehensive and extremely lively explanation of how the emerging arab state system actually worked. Patrick seale is dead, but his polished image of assad lives on born in belfast, seale spent the first decade and a half of his life in syria. That breadth of knowledge and experience led him to the conclusion reached by other analysts who have lived through too many contortions of the middle east robert fisk and thomas friedman are two others. Patrick seale wrote the book on syria but misread its. A former correspondent for the observer, he interviewed many middle eastern leaders and personalities. Beirut patrick seale a veteran journalist and author on middle eastern affairs, as well as one of the worlds leading historians on syria has died in london after a battle with. Seale authored numerous books, including the struggle for syria 1965, french revolution 1968 1968, philby, the long road to moscow 1973. Patrick abram seale 7 may 1930 11 april 2014 was a belfastborn british journalist and author who specialised in the middle east. Patrick seale is dead, but his polished image of assad.
In 1965, the british writer patrick seale published his classic the struggle for syria. Seale, unlike many of the western correspondents in the region, remembered an egypt before mubarak, a syria before assad and a lebanon before civil war. In his 1973 book, philby, the long road to moscow, written with his. It is a crime that yale up has allowed it to go out of print.
Four books on syria to help understand its troubled. Patrick seale, 83, a veteran british journalist whose books established him as the leading expert on modern syria, died friday in london, according to family and friends. The elder assad is the subject of another, widely quoted book on syria, by patrick seale, asad. Written in 1988 by british journalist and arabist patrick seale who is also the author of the 1965 classic the struggle for syria which is great as it doesnt interpret the asad regime in light of post cold war geopolitics but looks at it, well, from the world in 1988 withou the western end of history hubris. He died from brain cancer on april 11, 2014 at the age of 83. Patrick seale wrote the book on syria but misread its latest chapter anyone who has spent time living in or studying the middle east will be familiar with the work of patrick seale, who died last.
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