Demystifying Syria [Anglais] [Broché]

This is a useful collection of ten essays on various aspects of Syrian government policy and behavior. Topics covered range from the economy, to religious and ethnic tensions, to opposition politics, to foreign policy.

I found the essays particularly useful in understanding the forces for and against economic reform (entrenched interests are part of it, but so is a widespread "collectivist" social viewpoint) and some of the forces driving Syria's often opaque foreign policy (most notably a tendency to act as a balancer, thus tending to lean against whatever tides of influence are strengthening another regional player).

While it is useful to see different perspectives from different authors, the book does tend to come across as a series of narrow windows rather than as a single unified analysis. However, some of these narrow windows do sometimes turn out to be unexpectedly enlightening. For example, I had been tempted to skip an opaquely titled essay on "The Shii Mausoleums of Raqqa", but this turned out to be the basis for a thoughtful discussion of Iranian/Shiite religious influence in Syria and the interplay of different Islamic factions. (Among much else, I was surprised to discover that over two hundred thousand Iranian pilgrims visit Syria each year.)

With thirteen contributing authors, the writing quality and style vary considerably; sometimes rather stilted and academic, sometimes brisk and incisive. However, the overall work is quite readable and while I fear it does not entirely succeed in "demystifying" Syria, it does succeed in shedding a considerable amount of light and in offering rational underlying motivations for what can sometimes seem like eccentricities or miscalculations to outsiders. In general the authors seem to be aiming for a reasonably neutral perspective and seek to describe and to explain, rather than to either defend or criticize.

Overall, a useful and informative work.

Despite its poorly chosen title, this book is not for beginners. It's written by Syria experts, for Syria experts. I did not expect it to be a primer on Syria; I knew it was going to be a collection of essays. Still, I thought that it would be at least a serviceable intro to Syrian politics and life (given current events there, demand for a such a book is probably high at the moment). Also, the under-ten price for the kindle version was too tempting to pass up. Unfortunately, it does not and can not serve the purpose of being an introduction to Syria. Unless you are intimately familiar with the religion, economics, and culture of the region and country, you will find your eyes perpetually glazing over. You will get something out of the book, but not even 10% of what a Syria expert would get out of it. Furthermore, most of what you get will be in the form of interesting tidbits. You certainly won't have a broad understanding of Syrian life and culture in the modern era. Finally, be aware that most of the essays are about religion, the economy, and the culture of Syria, with just a smattering of politics thrown in. Since politics have been thrust to the fore of Syrian life in the last year, if you're looking for an intro to Syria, you're probably looking mostly for information on its politics. For a primer on Syria, look elsewhere. Personally, after being disappointed by this book I plan to try The Struggle for Power in Syria: Politics and Society under Asad and the Ba'th Party by Nikolaos van Dam, 2011 edition.

EDIT: I was also slightly disappointed by The Struggle for Power in Syria: Politics and Society under Asad and the Ba'th Party, mainly because of its very narrow focus on the sectarian dynamics at play in the formation of political cliques within Syria's military. While this has undoubtedly been a significant factor in modern Syrian history, it is far from the whole story. In the end, a good starting point for me was the very concise book The Ba'th and the creation of modern Syria by David Roberts (only 182 pages). However, in the time it took me to find an accessible introduction to modern Syria, serious Syria historians have come out with books that are specifically about the current civil war. So, the next book on my list is Syria: The Fall of the House of Assad by David W. Lesch. The kindle version, at least at the time of this writing, is selling for under four bucks.

Editor- and renowned expert on the Middle East- Fred H. Lawson's book is a great source of background information in trying to understand the current events in Syria. The focus lies on the societal impact of the various dimensions of Syria's state functioning. The (arbitrary) rule of law, the influence of the middle class and the role of religion are some of the topics.
The fact that the authors of the essays/chapters are both Arab as well as Westerners offers for a valuable and unbiased academic research.
Very compact in its information, requiring a careful read.
Unlikely many books on the Middle East, this one is academic in its nature.