Description

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“A provocative history . . . helps us to understand why the Arab spring is so important and valuable.”—David Ignatius, National Interest

In the twentieth century, while fighting a common enemy in Europe, Britain and France were locked in a clandestine struggle for power in the Middle East. From the first agreement to divide the region between them to the birth of Israel, A Line in the Sand is a gripping narrative of the last gasp of imperialism, with tales of unscrupulous double-dealing, cynical manipulation, and all-too-frequent violence that continues to the present day.

About the Author

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James Barr is the author of Setting the Desert on Fire. During the research for A Line in the Sand he was a Visiting Fellow at St Antony’s College, Oxford. He lives in London.

Praise For…

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An outstanding, revealing, and disturbing glimpse behind the closed doors of power politics.
— Booklist

Lively and entertaining. . . . [Barr] has thrown some light on hitherto unexplored corners.
— Financial Times

Starred review. Barr’s extensive archival research, evocative historical vignettes, and a superb sense of narrative pacing produce a first-rate work.
— Publishers Weekly

Combines the narrative pace of a spy novel with meticulous archival research.
— Eugene Rogan, author of The Arabs: A History