The Shah
English first edition
AuthorAbbas Milani
Original titleA look at the Shah
نگاهی به شاه
LanguagePersian
Pages602

The Shah (Persian: نگاهی به شاه, A look at the Shah) is a 2011 book by Abbas Milani, published by Macmillan. It is a biography of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the final Shah of Iran.

Susanne Pari of the San Francisco Chronicle stated that the biography was even-handed, lacking bias, and that it was "a fair and insightful account of a psychologically complex man who was ill-suited for a hard job, yet unable to give up or give in."[1] Stanley Meisler, in a Los Angeles Times article, also stated that the book had a neutral tone even though Pahlavi's government had previously persecuted Milani.[2]

Background

Milani, a political scientist,[3] is in charge of Stanford University's Iranian Studies program.[2] He had immigrated to the United States but later took a position in Iran as a teacher.[3] He had been imprisoned by the Pahlavi government.[2] Milani returned to Iran after the overthrow of the shah, but left again in 1986 when he had a conflict with the new rulers. Christian Caryl of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty stated that the persecution from both Pahlavi and Ayatollah forces likely influenced Milani's impartiality.[4] He read diplomatic reports and other formerly classified information from Iran, the United Kingdom, and the United States as part of his research. He also conducted several interviews.[1]

Contents

Pari stated that Pahlavi appears "distrustful and paranoid", based on failed assassination attempts and other actions against him, and that the author's research validates this portrait.[1] Milani had described Pahlavi as "in the classical sense of the word, a tragic figure — a hare pretending to roar like a lion."[2] The book uses lines from King Richard II at the start of each chapter;[1] this was done to compare Pahlavi to Richard II of England.[5] The final portion of the book chronicles the overthrow of Pahlavi.[2]

Reception

Joshua Muravchik, a research fellow of the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies stated in a Wall Street Journal article that the book was "even-handed and fair-minded" and that it is "a finely wrought, enlightening biography".[3]

David C. Acheson of the Washington Times stated that The Shah had "impressive" scholarship even though the book may find an amount of detail that would be "formidably dense".[5] Acheson concluded that the book will "likely to be the definitive biography of his subject, judging from the plethora of sources, notes, interviews and correspondence."[5]

Meisler stated that the book is "a thoughtful and colorful biography without rancor."[2] Meisler compared the overthrow of Pahlavi with the overthrow of former President of Egypt Hosni Mubarak, which occurred as part of the Arab Spring at the time of Meisler's review.[2]

Caryl stated that due to the high level of controversy and polarization surrounding the Shah in Iranian communities across the world, "Milani’s impartiality is vital".[4]

Publishers Weekly stated that the book is a "good source" about Pahlavi's life, but that it was "good enough to pique the reader's frustration that it isn't great."[6] Publishers Weekly stated that some facts lacked context and therefore a reader would not know how to interpret them.[6]

Kirkus Reviews stated it was "an incisive portrait" of Pahlavi and "A stimulating biography and a thorough examination of the makeup of" Iran.[7]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Pari, Susanne (2011-01-09). "'The Shah,' by Abbas Milani: biography review". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2018-11-29.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Meisler, Stanley (2011-02-20). "Book review: 'The Shah' by Abbas Milani". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2018-11-29.
  3. 1 2 3 Muravchik, Joshua (2011-01-19). "A Monarch Dethroned". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2018-11-29.
  4. 1 2 Caryl, Christian (2011-02-01). "New Biography Of Shah Of Iran Feels Oddly Contemporary". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Retrieved 2018-11-29.
  5. 1 2 3 Acheson, David C. (2011-02-09). "BOOK REVIEW: Messy end of shah's regime". Washington Times. Retrieved 2018-11-29.
  6. 1 2 "The Shah". Publishers Weekly. 2010-11-15. Retrieved 2018-11-29.
  7. ↑ "THE SHAH". Kirkus Reviews. 2010-10-19. Retrieved 2018-11-29.
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