Page 89 - All About History - Issue 38-16

Reviews

LAWRENCE OF ARABIA’S

THE ARABS, THE BRITISH AND THE
WAR: REMAKING OF THE MIDDLE EAST IN WWI
The legendary soldier, writer and archaeologist
is the subject of a brand new study
Author Neil Faulkner Publisher Yale University Press Price £25 Released Out now

he story of T E Lawrence and his precise It is perhaps easy to romanticise the mobile
role during the Arab Revolt is one of the desert warfare that took place, but Faulkner’s work
most famous of World War I. Lawrence shows that the war in the Middle East was every
became a legendary figure in his own bit as vicious as the fighting on the Western Front
T lifetime and remains so today. There have and he uses a vast range of primary sources, from
been many books that have focused on his Lawrence, General Allenby and the Arab leaders
remarkable career, but few that have combined to Ottomans and ordinary soldiers. This variety
both Lawrence and the Middle Eastern conflict as enhances a book that is already highly readable
a whole in equal measure. and provides an excellent balance between the
Neil Faulkner’s new study is fair to both complex political circumstances of the era with
Lawrence and the war in the desert itself. the daily struggle of fighting in a hostile and
Lawrence’s celebrated memoir, Seven Pillars unforgiving landscape.
Of Wisdom, is now confirmed, not just as a In terms of organisation, the book is also strictly
fascinating work of literature but also as a reliable chronological, which is to its credit as it allows
source for the Arab Revolt. Additionally, Faulkner the war to develop on its own before properly
provides in-depth chapters on the factors that introducing Lawrence nearly halfway through.
shaped Lawrence’s war, such as the resilience Faulkner’s work is an excellent introduction to
of the Ottoman Empire, operations in Arabia, the campaigns that shaped today’s conflict in the
Palestine, Sinai and Syria and the ambitions of the Middle East and the extraordinary man who was
Western imperial powers. caught up in it.

THE SOMME PI R A T E S , P R ISO N E R S A N D L E PE R S :
PIRATES, PRISONERS AND LEPERS:

L E S S O N S F R O M L I F E O U T S I D E L A W
LESSONS FROM LIFE OUTSIDE LAW

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The worst adversities can bring out the best in man
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Authors Paul H Robinson and Sarah M Robinson
Publisher Potomac Books Inc Price £19.99 Released Out now
istory is defined by its rebels and outcasts. prevent starvation. Separated from society and
prevent starvation. Separated from society and
At least, that is the message of Pirates, criminal justice, the group still established task
criminal justice, the group still established task
teams and leadership, made sacrifices to save the
Prisoners, And Lepers. In this incredible teams and leadership, made sacrifices to save the
exploration of humanity pushed to its weak (eating only the dead), and organised rescue
weak (eating only the dead), and organised rescue
expeditions, disproving Hobbes’s theory that
Hlimits, Paul H Robinson and Sarah M expeditions, disproving Hobbes’s theory that
Robinson discuss the importance of social order without law “every man is enemy to every man”.
without law “every man is enemy to every man”.
But it’s not just innocent victims of tragic
through the survival of individuals completely But it’s not just innocent victims of tragic
separated from law and civilisation. Would we accidents that feature in this compilation. It also
accidents that feature in this compilation. It also
includes those who deliberately live outside of
still retain our morals and cooperate to survive if includes those who deliberately live outside of
we are left to our own devices, or would we fight the law, such as pirates, prison uprisings and
the law, such as pirates, prison uprisings and
for our own gain to come out on top? utopian hippie communes, showing how even
utopian hippie communes, showing how even
In this book, the two Robinsons (one a top those consciously live without an organised
those consciously live without an organised
criminal law scholar, the other a former sergeant government still implement a system of social
government still implement a system of social
in the US Army and social worker) provide a order and code.
closer look at numerous occasions through Overall, the book provides interesting insight to
Overall, the book provides interesting insight to
some of the most incredible examples of humans’
history where man was posed with extreme some of the most incredible examples of humans’
capability to survive and thrive when faced
circumstances, such as plane crashes, leper capability to survive and thrive when faced
colonies and Nazi concentration camps, to see with extreme adversity. It assumes a positive
with extreme adversity. It assumes a positive
how people worked together to survive. A prime outlook upon human’s inherent nature as good,
outlook upon human’s inherent nature as good,
showing how our morals do not depend on social
example is the 1973 Andes plane crash disaster, showing how our morals do not depend on social
where survivors resorted to cannibalism to structure or central government.
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