Empires and Anarchies

The Middle East has the greatest oil reservoirs in the world. But, having created immense wealth, oil has not brought universal happiness to the region. The history of oil is not only about the great discoveries of resources, but the transformation of people and societies, the empires built on oil and the anarchies it has engendered. From the first explorers trudging through the desert wastes to the excesses of the Peacock Throne and the high stakes of OPEC, the burnt-out remains of Saddam Hussein's armies and the human tragedy of the Arab Spring, [this work] describes the history of oil in all its aspects: how it enriched and fractured the Middle East, eroding traditional ways of life and facilitating the rise of Islamic radicalism"--