Whirlwind by James Clavell. Been out for a while.
New York, NY, U.S.A. Morrow/Avon. 1986, First Edition. (ISBN: 0688066631)
found it used on http://www.antiqbook.com/boox/kin/013459.shtml for $5.15
It's an historic novel about Iran during the time of the overthrow of the Shah. I couldn't put it down and at the same time it angered me so badly I didn't want to pick it up again. A story of willful stupidity of an entire people. (Which also sums up a lot of the mideast...)
Also, T.E. Lawrence (a.k.a. Lawrence of Arabia) Seven Pillars of Wisdom. A primer on how the arabs flexed their muscles against the Turks for the first time in a meaningful way. http://www.lawrenceofarabia.info/ would get you started.
But then the western nations blew that opportunity ( see "willful stupidity" above)
His romantic account of the Bible-land victories was a huge success in a country which was numbed by the horrors of European trench warfare. Lawrence quickly became a popular hero, and found that this gave added weight to his political campaign. This was the only period in his life when he actively sought publicity, giving interviews willingly in order to advance the Arab case.
However, the idea of Arab independence was anathema to French imperialists, who were determined to rule Syria, while the British Government of India had similar ambitions in Iraq. Despite passionate lobbying Woodrow Wilson, the ailing American President, turned his back on the affair. Syria, Palestine and Mesopotamia (Iraq) were duly allocated to France and Britain as mandated territories - colonies in all but name.
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I think "blowback" is the term the CIA uses. Matter of fact, although not a book, on Discovery Channel's program on the CIA -- Part III "Blowback," documents the U.S. connection in Afghanistan