Posted on 05/18/2006 12:33:50 PM PDT by 68skylark
MARK BOWDEN The subtitle of Guests of the Ayatollah, Mark Bowden’s exhaustively researched account of the Iran hostage crisis of 1979 and 1980, is The First Battle in America’s War With Militant Islam.
This statement may be redundant, because the seeds of our current troubles in Iraq, not to mention our growing conflict with Iran, are evident on virtually each of the book’s 680 pages. The storming of the U.S. embassy in Tehran by young Islamic zealots led to 444 days of captivity for 66 American hostages, diplomatic dead ends based on failed U.S. intelligence, a disastrous attempt at a military solution and a still-growing culture of instantaneous media hype fueling major policy decisions. As with his best seller Black Hawk Down, the author deftly weaves hundreds of interviews into scenes that place the reader in the midst of the conflict.
Bowden reads at 4 p.m. May 24 at Montgomery Bell Academy’s Pfeffer Hall, and at Davis-Kidd Booksellers at 6 p.m. that evening. Both events are free and open to the public.
If you're thinking about taking a look, I strongly recommend it.
Thank you. Been waiting for someone to chime in on it.
Me too. The mainstream media might not talk about this book very much -- 'cause it's about an episode they can't blame on Bush.
So I guess its up to people like us to get the word out.
I really!!! liked his Blackhawk Down and Killing Pablo. I didn't know he had another book out.
How does Jimmy Carter come across in it?
I haven't read Killing Pablo. But this book on Iran is so good I've simply GOT to pick up some of Bowden's other books. Killing Pablo is probably at the top of my list.
Bowden seems sympathetic toward Carter -- he seems sympathetic to every American who was caught up in this crime.
If you're a Carter fan, you'll probably feel he gets a fair treatment.
If you're not a big fan (like me), you might feel he gets off a little bit easily -- but overall Bowden seems fair, and tries to avoid overt political statements by simply sticking with the facts.
While Bowden seems sympathetic toward Carter, he doesn't seem sympathetic to the press, or to the various leftists who traveled to Iran for propaganda shows. I give Bowden a lot of credit for the way he describes these incidents.
It's a reminder that the press has always been liberal and more or less anti-American. It's a reminder about how blessed we are today to have other avenues for news, like talk radio and the internet.
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