8vo. xv, 167 pp., b/w plates, cloth in d/w, index, previous owner’s inscription on lower endpaper, otherwise copy clean inside and in very good condition, Jonathan Cape, London, first edition, 1986.

Synopsis

Parsons served in the Arab world as a diplomat during the twilight years of British supremacy. In Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, the Sudan and Bahrain he was witness to political events that changed the face of the Middle East. This book is a compelling personal and impressionistic account of what is was like to be a diplomat in the final stages of “Britain’s moment”, in which the author evaluates the legacy left behind by the British to the Arabs.