My father is from Iran and his father was the shah's personal photographer. So, needless to say the shah is held in high respect in my family. I think it was good to look at it from another persective. I really enjoyed the book as it was real easy reading. I also enjoyed the romance.

This book was one of the best I have ever read. It was so sad at the end!!!!!! I wonder what happens to Shaheen. Does he get to America and find Jill? I finished this book on the same day my best friend left my school, so Jill and I had something in common but that's not the point. I cried so much at the end!!!!!!!! But a very good book...I even liked the romance and I normally hate romance.

For those of us still struggling to understand who Dr. Shariatie was and the role he has played in shaping the lives of many of us, this book is a must. Rahnema's depiction of the other Ali's life is a well documented, smart, and poetically presented masterpiece. Definitely put this book on your reading list.

What do you expect from the Shah of Iran to say about a revolution who overthrew his dictatorship?
This book is poorly written. It is not informative either about Iran or about the revolution. But it worth reading just to know more about a maniac who ruled a country for about 30 years.

Political apologetics have nearly become a literary genre. I remember reading Admiral Horthy's 'A life for Hungary', the Kaiser's memoirs, or Albert Speer's autobiography; this book falls in the same category.
The shah is a difficult figure to come to terms with. Demonized by the Western left and many Iranians in the 1970s, he made a conscious effort to modernize his nation from the top down. However, despite the western 'dressing' he remained firmly rooted in the traditions of Iranian politics and his house.
Opposite to attempts for reform stood absolutely barbaric political terror, and successful attempts at economic self-assertion were compensated by a bizarre confidence in international arms dealers, leading to an unprecented but absolutely useless military build-up. One of the appendices to this book shows the Shah's fixation with arms, listing Iranian's entire arsenal.
Sometimes one is genuinely touched by the Shah's intentions, and his bewilderment at the actions of the Western powers, at others mortified by things that are demonstrably untrue (like his claim to get among people as often as possible when his seclusion was very well known). Of course, this is the work of an ill man that was very uncertain what was going to happen to him but apparently convinced of his own right. That may be the lasting impression this book leaves: the tragedy of an exiled man still unable to rise above his own self-delusion.

This book was dictated by the Shah when he was already dying of cancer. It is, therefore, not surprising that it comes across as choppy, uneven and, at times, even confusing. But , once one learns how to set its defects aside, theShah's book provides many keys to his complex mind.
Here is a man with a vision for " a great civilisation" in a country that has justly been hailed as the birthplace of some of the world's greatest cultures. Whether one shares that vision or not is a different matter. In 1978-79 sufficient numbers of Iranians, though not a majority,rejected that vision and, instead, opted for an " Islamic" model promoted by the mullahs.
The Shah's vision is now past history.There is no way that present-day Iran can become one of the world's five major powers as the Shah had dreamed.
The Shah's " Answer to History" is best appreciated if read in conjunction with some of the biographies evoted to him in recent years. I recommend three of them: William Shawcross's " The Shah's Last Ride" which is the best in covering the fallen monarchs last few months of life in exile, Amir Taheri's critical but sympathetic " The Unknown Life of the Shah", and Marvin Zonis's " Majestic Failure" whcih reads like a Western indictment of the late monarch but , unintentionally perhaps, also reveals his gratness.
James Malone, Canberra, Australia

William Shawcross is a good reporter. But in this biography he faced one problem: he knew his subject only from a distance.
His account of the Shah's illness and his final agonies is excellent because it is based on extensive interviews with the doctors who treated the exiled king.
The rest of the book, however,suffers from insufficient research and analysis.
Many of the Iranians interviewed by Shawcross told him either what he wanted to hear or what they wanted him to hear. He had no means of checking their claims by cross-examining other witnesses and/or digging into Iranian archives.(Obviously closed to him).
Read this book as a medical account of the Shah's final days. ( You learn a great deal about the type of cancer that finally killed the Shah!) But for a deeper analysis of the Shah's politics, and some speculation about his eventual place in history, go to Marvin Zonis's " Majestic Failure."
And if you want a critical, and at the same time sympathetic, Iranian view go to Amir Taheri's " The Unknown Life of the Shah" which reads like a modern version of a Greek tragedy.
I also recommend the Shah's own " Answer to History" which, although self-serving and at times annoyingly dishonest,neverthelkess , provides much insight into the soul of that complex and misunderstood man.
AN IRANIAN READER

This book is superb, It tells the good the bad and the ugly in a fair unbaised manner which is rare for books on Iran. This book gives excellent insight onto one of history's most misunderstood figures, The Late Shah of Iran. Interviews with all the major players in the last days of The Peacock Throne. One disapointment Shawcross does not really delve very solidly into the Mossadegh era and the Shah & the CIA's role in helping the Iranian Air Force restore him to the throne. Former Queen Soraya's book is probably best for that but that book - Palace of Solitudes - is rare and was published only in Europe and not in English. All in All, if you are a interested in the life and death of the Pahlavi Dynasty and want a fair and unbiased autopsy then this is your book

I HAVE READ MANY BOOKS ON THE PAHLAVI DYNASTY. THIS IS ONE OF THE FEW THAT IS EXTREMELY ACCURATE. IT IS VERY INSIGHTFUL, AND HAS SO MUCH INFORMATION. A MUST READ, BUT HARD TO FIND BOOK.

Iran had always fascinated me, and this book only adds to the intrigue. It is a fascinating case of how dictators (in this case the Shah) are an interesting mix of ignorant, cruel, coward, confused, appeasing and corrupt. Also, a good case of how people in their desperation to get away from one evil don't think twice about accepting the other evil.

I have seen several of Shah's family (in exile) on TV imploring their case to "serve their country". While I used to feel sympathy for them earlier, this book helped me understand why millions turned against their tyrannical rule.

The author claims that the Shah defrauded the State exchequer worth hundreds of millions of dollars by forcing banks to give him (and his family) huge loans (which remained unpaid), by running virtually all major corporations of Iran as personal business, and foolishly thinking of taking Iran back to its past glory.

This is also a telling tale of how the CIA virtually ran Iran during the Shah's reign. I would have liked a little more info on the Iran-Iraq war, but found it interesting to note that it was started by Shah's foolishness in dismissing Saddam, as incapable of taking him on.

Since this book was written only after 3 years of the Shah's departure, the author tends to have deep bias against him, and even some sympathy for the Islamicists led by Khomeini. It would be interesting to come across a book on Iran where there is a comparison between Shah's rule and the Islamic rule. However, it is a great starting point to learn the modern history of a country with tremendous potential to be a world leader.

What happened in Iran and why? Mohamed Heikal has managed to bring some understanding into the build up to the Revolution of 1979. This is not a religious book, nor is it totally anti West.

We Christians hear a lot about the horrors of Islam - that is why I read this book. It is not a doctrine on Islam and its teachings, however the roots of the religion are explained and the message comes accross quite clearly why the Ayatollah mannaged to achieve what he did.

The book is well written and translated, the translations from Arabic are understandible. I found it very interesting and read it a second time to be able to more clearly grasp the sequence of events, names and places.

For somebody who wants to understand what happened in Iran in the 70's this book is a good start.

too my opinion this is one off greatest book i ever read . it needed some more information a bout a normarl iranian people . i well be greatfull too get more books and information a bout my calture.

I wish I could rate this book with no stars! It's full of mistakes, inaccuracies and incorrect assumptions. The book cover depicts a picture of the Shah next to the flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran. This would be the same as putting the picture of President Bush next to the flag of the Taliban. It's truely an insult.

In addition to the above mistake, the book is riddled with amatuer errors, such as listing Russia as a current neighbor of Iran. Any current map would illustrate that Russia no longer shares a land border with Iran, after the break up of Soviet Union.

There were too many mistakes to keep track, so the overall conclusion is how could one trust the author's reporting who can't even get the basic facts straight.

Despite that I read the book quickly, only to be additionally disappointed by the inability of the author to at least try to understand a nation with 2500 years of written history, of which only the last 24 years are without a king. It's difficult to take any of author's reporting unbiased or culturally sensitive. A great propaganda book for the Islamic Republic of Iran!

I thought this book did a tremendous job of telling the story of a controversial figure without taking sides. I found no factual errors to speak of--the other review posted mentions that the book refers to Iran's border with Russia, but it's referring to it's historic relationship, not it's current status. Propagandists for the Shah and the Pahlavi family will probably be angered by the book's references to the Shah's human rights abuses, but I thought the author did an excellent job of backing up her claims. It's well-written, and it treats it's audience--young adults--with respect. To accuse the author of being pro-Islamist is to completely miss the point of her arguments. She writes passionately about the tragedy that is modern Iranian history, and I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the region.

There is an Iranian proverb that says (paraphrasing it): there are many walnuts in the don's house, but each and everyone of them is accounted for.

It is true that the Khomeini regime has committed an unprecedented amount of crimes in Iran, but that does not mean that the Iranian people have forgotten the crimes committed by the Pahlavi regime, its evil SAVAK and the very role that Ashraf Pahlavi herself played in those crimes.

Let alone the money that her family stole from the Iranian people.

I wish the Pahlavis would stay quiet and keep themselves busy with the loot taken from Iran.

This book is fantastic for what it is. It is a propagandistic work, written by the twin sister of the last Shah of Iran, of course she is going to defend him and his reign! Her book is very anti-Khomeini and she looks forward to a time of restoration when the Pahlavi Dynasty will once again rule in a constitutional monarchy the country of Iran. She does not apologize for her biases, but recognizes them outright, which is admirable. I really enjoyed this book and really enjoyed her perspective.

The book was somewhat dry, yet it was informative. Although on the surface the author tried to remain unbiased, it was evident that he was pro-khomeini. There was no mention of the 1000's of people murdered under his authority, especially that of the Bahai's who lived in Iran. Yet the Shah was portrayed as an oppressive ruler who had no regard for his people. Without knowing the actual history of Iran and that of the revolution, this book would be hard to follow.

I had Dr Milani two semesters ago for an International Politics class. I found him to be a rather open minded professor, but in this book he presents a rather one sided argument. Still, for those not familiar with the Islamic Revolution this book may be helpful. I would recommend reading other sources for further information and formulating your own opinions.