With its focus on the creation of the modern nations of the Middle East, this fascinating book reveals the historical foundations of the present-day conflicts in the region. Fromkin weaves a panoramic, absorbing tale spanning the period from the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, through British and French involvement in the region to independence after WWI. This book has been called the best survey of the early 20th-century background to modern day realities in the region. A new edition.  (ARB13, $20.00)