Lawrence: The Uncrowned King of Arabia

Rating:
Summary: A Woman Veiled, But With One Breast Exposed
Review: A contemporary of T.E. Lawrence summed up his personality as that of a woman who wears a veil but has one breast is visible. This, Asher argues, is the essence of the man - ostensibly shy and enigmatic, but underneath, an exhibitionist. Thus in private school, he distinguished himself by his remarkably strange diet, which intrigued and repelled his contemporaries. From childhood, Asher takes us on Lawrence's journeys from Oxford - where he was a star classicist - to pre-war France and Palestine, where he developed his interest in castle design. Thence to Syria as an archeologist, where many years were spent on a dig. Hardly typical background for a future intelligence agent and general, for which he became famous. Less famous, but in many respects most fascinating of all, are his post-war years in deliberate "obscurity," under pseudonym as an enlisted man in the British Air Force. Asher argues, convincingly, that his "retirement" into the ranks, ostensiblly a retreat from society, was a form of passive attention seeking - for nothing raised his public profile more than did these attempts at invisibility. No matter. His exploits, both military and personal, continue to fascinate.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: For anyone who likes well-written history or biography, this is a good bet. About the fascinating and sometimes perverse life of L. of Arabia. Items from the book: he was very likely gay, as well as a masochist; although he wanted the arab revolt, he still wanted the arab states to remain under a "protectorate" of Britain; he would have his valet whip him on bare buttocks; after his well-known WWI escapades he tried enlisting as private in armed forces again under assumed name, although everyone knew who he really was; he lied a lot, but for various reasons.

Rating:
Summary: A Crowning Glory Of A Man Much Mistaken.
Review: It was with the greatest fortune that I happened across this biography a couple of years ago,and immediately I was struck by the galloping pace and relentless ability Asher displays in making you turn each page.Two years later I find myself re-reading passage upon passage of this wonderful literary work with just as much enthusiasm as was spent the first time around.
Out with the old and in with the new.This assessment of the enigmatic Lawrence steers joyfully clear of the deeply mundane school years that most other biographers choose to dwell upon.
Instead,at last we have a biographer that is willing to put Lawrence to the test and travel in the footsteps of the little man.An experienced camel trecker and linguist himself,Asher portrays the whole Arabian experience and sustains our interest with fantastic descriptions of landscape and personal thought as to what Lawrence was thinking at the time.However,Asher is aware of the complex character of Lawrence and acknowledges the limits one is faced with when dealing with motive.
Ashers reluctance to be drawn into the shallow debate of Lawrences sexuality in a present climate where the obsession of scrutinising potential homosexual desire in the disguise of political corrctness is overwhelming,is both refreshing and worthwhile.He has managed to put to one side obvious adoration and produced a constructive view of personality and genius.On a respectful level this book is clearly too honest to be even sentimental-even though he often discovers that all is not black and white in the world of Lawrence.
In this single work Asher offers us a vast depth from an angle that all previous biographers have failed to acknowledge and attempt.One is struck by the sense that this book is reluctant to enhance the myth of Lawrence.This is the only point on which Asher fails.His conclusions concerning the exploits of Lawrence could have no other outcome.
"All men dream: but not equally.Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men,for they may act their dream with open eyes,to make it possible.This I did."
Can this biography of Lawrence be bettered?Keep on dreaming!
Paul Barnes.

Rating:
Summary: good balance of history and analysis
Review: michael asher in some ways retraces his steps following lawrences footsteps with his pursuit of the truths behind the bravo two zero sas patrol several years later.
Lawrences story is revealed well, and Asher seems to maintain a balanced and truthful narative throughout.
it is particulairly interesting when Asher trys to recreate and analyse some of lawrences greater exploits, as an ex sas trooper fluent in arabic and mounted on the back of a camel, he is fairly well suited to do so.
overall a very good insight into an amazing man and his part in a huge and formative chunk in the formation of the modern middle east.
UNsuprisingly its the politicians who come out looking like the real villians, whereas Lawrences reputation as hero comes out pretty strong

Rating:
Summary: Lawrence deserves much better
Review: This book fails in many ways. The reason it gets 2 stars instead of one is that it's hard to discuss Lawrence without some fascinating things coming through.

First, Asher makes himelf part of the biography. He discusses his own personal travels in a manner that add absolutely nothing to the reader's understanding. The final paragraph of the book begins with "I." Further, the frequency and manner in which he interjects himself in the book is highly annoying.

Second, there are numerous factual problems with the book. At one point Asher refers to Turks shooting their rifles at Bedu who are over two miles away. Even a trained sniper with modern equipment wouldn't take that shot. Further, his description of Lt. Junor's plane crash is at odds with other accounts. Asher says the plane erupted in flames even though there are published photos of the crashed plane that show otherwise. Lastly on this point, Asher doesn't use Tunbridge's writings on Lawrence's days in the RAF as reference material. It's a surprising omission.

Third, as other reviewers noted, Asher writes extensively about Lawrence's psyche. This would be sensible if Asher was either trained in psychology or referenced studies by those who are; unfortunately, neither is the case. Instead there are a few bibliographical references to works on psychology, but none specific to Lawrence. Asher's vehement discussion of Lawrence's mother makes the reader wonder whether the author or the subject had the greater maternal relationship issues.

Fourth, is Asher's style, or more accurately, styles. At times he uses the contemporary jargon of British soldiers, whereas at other points he writes in a very stilted manner adding unnecessary Latin phrases to the text. His best writing is when he's providing background or contextual material such as the discussion of British military actions elsewhere in WWI.

Lawrence was one of the most fascinating personalities of the 20th century. He deserves a much better biography.

Rating:
Summary: Don't judge this book by its cover
Review: This book is most certainly an easy read. Asher whets your appetite by giving a different perspective from other Lawrence biographies. He follows in Lawrence's footsteps to historically significant spots and gives an eyewitness account of varing desert terrains with a pleasant nostalgia. However, instead of pursuing that route he turns to psychological interpretations of Lawrence's personality that are not supported, but merely purported. Overall this is not a definitive biography of Lawrence.

Rating:
Summary: An uneven book about a fascinating man
Review: This is a large and invovled biography of T E Lawrence, written by an author who starts out as an admirer, and remains so to the end, though to a much lesser degree.

Though there is a lot of information about the battles in the desert, i found this book most interesting when the author explores Lawrence's psyche and personality, and attempts (not always successfully or believably) at the truth behind the myth. He tests a lot of the claims about the great man, and mainly finds them wanting. This book is especially strong when it admits that it comes to no definate conclusion - rather, the author presents the facts as he sees them and lets the reader decide.

This book is probably one of the better Lawrence biographies out there at the moment (though i would not say nearly the best) as it delves into the contradictions of the man and the myuth, and isn't afraid to 'pull punches' and not make excuses for the more troubling aspects of Lawrence's personality.

I finished this book wondering why such a genius felt compelled to fabricate so much about his life, but also seeing him as more ' three-dimensional' than the common myth.