A well-written book, and well documented. No matter what your view of the Arab-Israeli conflict, this book balances against the 99% of books that take a pro-Israel slant. I especially appreciated Khouri's calm, objective manner of discussing the issues.Is this book outdated? Heck no! What I think is interesting is that history basically never changes in the Middle East. This book is essential for any scholar of the area. 
 
The book presents a historical and political account of the middle east from 1922-1984. The book was originally written in 1968, then revised in 1976 and 1985. During the process of revision, Khouri, appearantly, did not make many changes in the original text, a fact that leaves much of the book outdated. Khouri's account takes a strong anti Israeli and pro Arab stance. For example, he chooses to downplay the Palestinian terrorist attacks during the 1970s and mentions such attacks as the attack on the Israeli athletes in Munich and the attack of the Marine base in Beirut with no detail. His study is based very closely on UN records and ignores the reality of the Middle East. 
 
The book presents a historical and political account of the middle east from 1922-1984. The book was originally written in 1968, then revised in 1976 and 1985. During the process of revision, Khouri, appearantly, did not make many changes in the original text, a fact that leaves much of the book outdated. Khouri's account takes a strong anti Israeli and pro Arab stance. For example, he chooses to downplay the Palestinian terrorist attacks during the 1970s and mentions such attacks as the attack on the Israeli athletes in Munich and the attack of the Marine base in Beirut with no detail. His study is based very closely on UN records and ignores the reality of the Middle East. 
 