Stewart, Desmond

Vast political and economic shifts have transformed the Middle East since the 1985 edition of this award-winning work: the end of the Cold War, the Iran-Iraq war, and the Lebanese civil war; the outbreak of the Persian Gulf War; and the historic 1993 peace accord between Israel and the Palestinians, to name just a few. Which is why Robert A. and Elizabeth Warnock Fernea felt a need to return to the towns and cities they had written about - in Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Israel, and on the West Bank - to see just how these changes had affected the people who live there. Taking the reader beyond the corridors of power to the most candid of kitchen-table confidences, the authors succeed brilliantly in revealing the human face of the Arab world.

T.E. Shaw, better known as Lawrence of Arabia, was one of the most romantic, heroic, and enigmatic figures of his day. The subject of myth and hagiography, he was equally accomplished in several fields--as archaeologist, diplomat, writer, and soldier--and he worked throughout World War I and after in the Middle East in efforts to promote independent Arab states. His autobiography Seven Pillars of Wisdom is one of the greatest works of its kind. The esteemed military historian B.H. Liddell Hart wrote this study of Lawrence in order to pierce the clouds of legend. He discussed Lawrence's Oxford days, his experiences as an intelligence officer in Egypt, and in particular the tactics of guerrilla warfare he practiced so effectively against the large Turkish armies during World War I. Liddell Hart was one of the few to give Lawrence his full justice as both a man and a brilliant soldier. Long out-of-print, this book unravels the many puzzling features of Lawrence's story and restores him to his proper place as one of the twentieth century's heroic, but very human, figures.

This comprehensive review of Turkey's health care system shows that health status has improved rapidly in Turkey in recent decades, partly as a result of higher health spending. It describes the introduction of an ambitious Health Transformation Program in 2003 which brought universal health insurance to Turkey in 2008 and has begun the process of public hospital reforms and the rolling out of family-practitioner services throughout the country. Challenges remain, however, including completing the Health Transformation Program and ensuring that the new health system provides value for money and stays affordable. This report analyzes these challenges and sets out policy suggestions aimed at addressing them.--Publisher's description.