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Summary: Seven Pillars
Review: The book in its depth, scope and subject matter reminds me of A Bright and Shining Lie. As with that book, it suffers from an overload of details that are distracting to someone unfamiliar with the events. I'm sure that to so one more intimately familiar with the historical events of the time the book would be a fascinating and informative read. I though came away with the most from the chapters that stuck with broader historical and political commentary, rather than the specific names of who slept in what tent when, who owned which camel (and said camel's gender) and what ulitmately killed the camel (mange, dehydration, neglect, etc).
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Summary: A Tale of Two Loyalties
Review: The complexity of the desert lies in not in its terrain or its people, but in its politics. The extreme economic scarcity inherent to the land has created a tangled web of inter-tribal alliances, loyalties, and rivalries that put medieval Europe to shame. In this book, T.E. Lawrence describes how he put his phenomenal understanding of this system to work, overcoming and manipulating tribal differences and clan rivalries, in driving the Ottoman Empire out of the Arabian peninsula.As his irregular army fights and raids its way to Damascus, Lawrence's misgivings about his duty as an English soldier to serve England first, even if it means misleading the men who so trustingly follow him, is a source of great anguish. He clearly does not consider himself to be a "real" soldier, though he is expected to act as one. The double life he must lead wears him down greatly; he finally tires of the desert that he once loved, and requests to be sent home. Though the tales of minor skirmishes and major battles as well as the humorous anecdotes are quite entertaining and captivating in their own right, the great strength of this book is in its description of the complex socio-political system of the Bedouin nomads of Arabia and the even more complex mind of its author.
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Summary: Describing War as Art
Review: The is a book about men for men... About 7800 names appear in the book, half of them 'Ali' and all of them male. And it is in a way a glorification of terrorism -- at least terrorist tactics, albeit devoted to an arguably noble end. So I think I might never have read it had I not been urged on by a close friend...
But it's one of those few books which has genuinely altered my perspective. I find I keep bringing it up in conversation. Whatever one may say about the veracity of the statements made -- I gather they are to some degree in doubt -- there is no doubt about the depth of Lawrence's character. He writes beautifully -- completely beautifully. The book is a sort of odd combination of psychology, history and fabulous anecdotes -- many of the best of which did not appear in the movie, by the way... Lawrence, of course, loved Arabia, and clearly had very profound reservations about what he did. He questioned the validity of involving himself in the future of the Arabs to the degree that he did. He clearly felt it might have future unforeseen consequences. And he spends a fair amount of time candidly exposing his own motivations and doubts. The picture he presents of the Bedou is generous. Nevertheless, it's hard not to be left with some sense of amazement at the extent to which diplomacy was necessary and the skill with which Lawrence was able to pull it off. Auda after being insulted on one occasion has to be physically tied down for a half hour -- otherwise everyone felt sure he would have killed several people. Such people in most Western nations are locked up. But what we throw out in this culture, Lawrence regards as material that he uses to create a sort of work of art -- some of Lawrence's reservations about his actions were rooted in an awareness that it was to some degree a form of self expression. So Auda gets untied and put at the head of an army composed of men some of whom he would otherwise have shot on sight. As a woman, I'd feel a little less left out if it were a little less great.
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Summary: Very Interesting. Probably not for the reason you think.
Review: The personal memoirs of "Lawrence of Arabia" make fascinating reading. Much more interesting and revealing than the movie we have all seen. The book is extremely well written and very interesting. The description of landscape, weather, living conditions, and food reveal more about the variety of textures of sands, floods, retained water, and plants in the desert than anyone from a more temperate climate would ever expect. Who could expect the problems associated with rescuing a camel from a snowstorm? Or the details of providing food for both camel and man? His view of the Arab tribes and leaders he met provides a wealth of insight into the expectations from both sides, and how those expectations are infrequently met. He spends considerable time contrasting the 'Arab' way of life, both between the various tribes and with the Turks and the English. Not surprising, he seems fascinated with the 'Arab,' and then, as time, internal conflict, and experience go on an increasing pull to the life and overcast weather of England. Many of the most revealing passages in the book relate the internal struggle in what he describes as a basic dishonesty of his position dealing with what he presents as a basically honest, talented, illiterate people and the ultimate betrayal of the Arab Uprising that he was so intimately involved in. As with most personal memoirs, this book probably over states personal accomplishments, dismisses or ignores major accomplishments of others, and definitely presents an individual point of view of everything and everyone around him. Well worth reading, just for that.
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Summary: The best Book I have ever read!!
Review: This book is facinating, intruging, but to the average boring without words. I find it as my favorite book, not so much for the war content, but for the experiance the author pulls you into. He paints a wounderful masterpeice of the dersert cultures, landscape, and his own hardships. I would greatly recomend this book.
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Summary: Great... fiction?
Review: This book is great and the movie based on this book is great. Lawrence's account of the facts, however, is apparently "on thin ice" in many cases. If you enjoy this book, then I'd also suggest "A Peace to End All Peace" by David Fromkin (ISBN: 0380713004).
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Summary: You must read this.
Review: This is an epic account of the role he played in Arabia during WWI which subsequently spawned the film (good, but not half so good as the book) 'Lawrence of Arabia'. A fascinating and highly intelligent account, which charts how he helped (some would say he was crucial, though he would deny it) to stir up a major rebellion against the Turks, forging to achieve this powerful nationalist sentiments which have yet to recede fully. Some people might think it goes on somewhat too long, but really there's nothing there which I wouldn't have wanted to read, and I would sincerely recommend this for just about anyone. The detailed character portrayals, intense self-analysis and involved schemes described here are worth their weight in gold.
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Summary: A book Bush, Powell, Rumsfeld and Blair should've read!
Review: This is an outstanding work everyone should read to get a handle on Arab history and psychology through the eyes of a brilliant, sensitive Westerner who came to fully understand a proud, disenfranchised people at a time when their generosity was only equaled by their desire to chart their own future. Pity the French effected a regime change in Syria nearly 80 years ago. The cinematic version was a masterpiece, but placed too much emphasis on Lawrence. This book by T. E. Lawrence is far more honest and insightful. Even today much of his insight into the psychology would help leaders come to grips with the reference base that develops the great, as well as the infamous. Viewers of the cinema would presume that Lawrence, almost by himself, forged an alliance against the Turks. He, however, (Chapt. XXIX) gives the bulk of that genius to Feisal (who escaped the Turks with the aid of a Lebanese of little fame, Rafik Jabbour). Feisal became first king of modern Syria, then was ousted by French-led regime change (irony of ironies), only to go on to become the first king of Iraq. One wonders what might have become of Arabia had Feisal remained in command in Syria? Without French and British meddling, it is logical that Feisal, with help from Rafik Jabbour and like-minded Egyptians Rafik had become partners with in Palestine and in Jordan, would have united all Arabia into one nation, as was a common goal. Perhaps that was the biggest fear of the land-owner class in Israel and in some Arab quarters. At any rate, the meddling did occur and did divide an already fragmented region. In 2004 one wonders also, now that another regime change has been effected, whether the present tenuous hold will give way to democracy, or to the rule by ideology, or to still more fragmentism. Surely if Westerners attempt to impose a system of too little flexibility, or a military mindset in which all is controlled from a centralized government, only failure can result. Occupation, even by white knights, is doomed. Lawrence noted the failures of such a system that was practiced by the Turks 85 years ago in chapter XXXIII. Throughout the book I found tremendous nuggets of wisdom regarding the Arab mind. True, as a Westerner himself, Lawrence's vision was imperfect. It was, though, the clearest vision among all Westerners of his day and, likely, more acute than most present-day writers. This is a must book for those wanting to understand Arab psychology and, to almost as great an extent, military history as applied in a hostile environment in a guerrilla fashion. Further, those entrepreneurs competing in the business world could benefit. It belongs alongside books by On War, The Art of War, and The Prince. Lest one misconstrues the above comments, let me say here my reference refers not to military but to the coming challenge of governing. Trying to impose a Western-style governing method will be akin to trying to rule a vast territory the way the Turks tried. The battle now is one of ideas, not conquest. Outsiders must insert their positions only at critical control points with a view towards preventing catastrophe. In that sense, it is Westerners who must fight the guerrilla campaign and not become a fixed target for the various factions fighting to become king of the mountain. Sadly that last sentence has not reached the right readers. My worst worry expressed in May 2003 has now (Jan. 2004) become all too apparent. Perhaps Kerry/Edwards or Kerry/McCain will right the errors and help the Iraqis and the Palestinians to become their own masters. Some will wonder the need for such comments in a book review. These comments are those by Lawrence. That is precisely the beauty of his book and proves Seven Pillars of Wisdom is worthy contribution of a true genius. Further, the freedom to freely exchange ideas is the greatest value of democracy and can become the most cherished benefit for all people in the region despite the mistakes foreigners have made. What we at LJ's Breaking Free$ hold most important is opportunity through discourse and dialogue. Lawrence's battlefield accomplishments may or may not have been momentous. His literary skill may or not be the equal of Clausewitz. His insight into the Arab mind at a time when it was some complicated by oil wealth and such is of utmost value for us. Bush, Rumsfeld and Blair need to read this now - Bill Anderson (LJ).
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Summary: I had not the patience for it
Review: This is the book upon which the fabulous film "Lawrence of Arabia" was supposedly based. I expected the book to be the same story, only with more depth and more meat to it. Instead, I discovered two things: the film is only loosely based upon the book; the book is more of a journal than a novel. Film versus Book: In several instances, the film takes two to five different people and condenses them into one character. More accurately, a character in the film represents one real person, but engages in the activities of two to five different people, whereas the book tries to fairly attribute actions to the right person, creating a much larger cast. This does three things: the film's characters become larger-than-life (which fits an epic film well), this makes the film's story move faster and be somewhat more straightforward than the book's, and this levels the playing field (by condensing the other characters, they are more comparable to Lawrence's character in the film, whilst the book's non-central characters are always in Lawrence's shadow). Journal versus Novel: The film's story moves linearly and, despite the film's length, the story moves quickly. Only necessary details are shown. In the book, Lawrence gives an account of his daily activities, with sidebar accounts of what happens elsewhere that affects him, creating a very detailed and somewhat disjointed narrative. In my opinion, the story drowns in its own details. Overall: The film is actually a distillation of this book, and not a cinematic rendering of the same story. If a reader wants to understand the Middle East, from the perspective of an Englishman with sympathy for and understanding of the Arabs, this is an excellent book. If the reader wants an adventure saga, comparable to the glorious "Lawrence of Arabia", look elsewhere or risk disillusionment.
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Summary: The best tortured heroic Imperial England ever produced
Review: Those us trapped in late Twentieth Century technical society, bored but well-fed, sometimes wish for the courage and circumstance to take up arms and shed the blood of colonial oppressors, if there were any, blood, oppressors, or colonies. T.E. Lawrence had the sort of unhappy childhood (bastard, public school) that seems attractive if you're not personally part of it, and Languages at Oxford, among which a noted translation of Homer, and Arabic, which got him into interesting times in Ottoman Palestine. Lawrence saw no reason not to fight and kill in a field belonging to Arabs, and he brought strategy and resource to the Arab liberation, and suffering and glory to himself. He helped bring the Arabs their freedom, aided the British cause, hurt the Turks and their allies the Germans, all in the desert, among the ferocious tribes. Bully. Mark Bergsei
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