King of kings : the Iranian revolution : a story of hubris, delusion and catastrophic miscalculation / Scott Anderson.
"On New Year's Eve, 1977, on a state visit to Iran, President Jimmy Carter toasted Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, King of Kings, Light of the Aryans, Shadow of God on Earth, praising Iran as "an island of stability " due to "your leadership and the respect and admiration and love which your people give to you." Iran had the world's fifth largest army and was awash in billions of dollars in oil revenues. Construction cranes dotted the skyline of its booming capital, Tehran. The regime's feared secret police force SAVAK had crushed communist opposition, and the Shah had bought off the conservative Muslim clergy inside the country. He seemed invulnerable, and invaluable to the United States as an ally in the Cold War. Fourteen months later the Shah fled Iran into exile, forced from the throne by a volcanic religious revolution led by a fiery cleric named Ayatollah Khomeini. The ensuing hostage crisis forever damaged America's standing in the world. How could the United States, which had one of the largest CIA stations in the world and thousands of military personnel in Iran, have been so blind? The spellbinding story Scott Anderson weaves is one of a dictator blind to the disdain of his subjects and a superpower blundering into disaster. Scott Anderson tells this astonishing tale with the narrative brio, mordant wit, and keen analysis that made his bestselling Lawrence of Arabia one of the key texts in understanding the modern Middle East. The Iranian Revolution, Anderson convincingly argues, was as world-shattering an event as the French and Russian revolutions. In the Middle East, in India, in Southeast Asia, in Europe, and now in the United States, the hatred of economically-marginalized, religiously-fervent masses for a wealthy secular elite has led to violence and upheaval - and Iran was the template. King of Kings is a bravura work of history, and a warning."-- Dust jacket.
Record details
- ISBN: 9780385548076
- ISBN: 0385548079
- ISBN: 9780593315668
- ISBN: 0593315669
- Physical Description: xxiii, 481 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, photographs ; 24 cm.
- Edition: First Doubleday hardcover edition.
- Publisher: New York, NY : Doubleday, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, 2025
- Copyright: ©2025.
Content descriptions
- Bibliography, etc. Note:
- Includes bibliographic references (pages [427]-460) and index.
- Formatted Contents Note:
- Preface -- The courtier -- The Queen -- A tense, taut little boy -- Gold rush -- The Emperor in his labyrinth -- A delightful meeting -- The butterfly effect -- The unholy alliance -- A deceiving peacefulness -- A hall of burnt bones -- Black friday -- A King flying kites -- A most dangerous secret -- The walls close -- A supreme leader in waiting -- Option C -- "Destroying all classified" -- Putting on the same boots -- A most delicate dance -- Epilogue
Search for related items by subject
Available copies
- 26 of 35 copies available at NC Cardinal.
- 1 of 1 copy available at Brown Library System. (Show)
Holds
- 3 current holds with 35 total copies.
Other Formats and Editions
Show Only Available Copies
| Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| George H. & Laura E. Brown Library | 955.053 And (Text) | 30308101385137 | Adult New Nonfiction | Available | - |
| Cleveland County Main Library | 955.053 AND (Text) | 22281500162069 | Adult Nonfiction | Available | - |
| Cumberland Headquarters | CMB1965085 (Text) | CMB1965085 | Technical Services | In process | - |
| Enka-Candler Library | 955.053 AND (Text) | 0020513924017 | Adult New Nonfiction | Checked out | 08/18/2026 |
| Forsyth Central | 955.053 A 2025 (Text) | 0112524713789 | Adult Nonfiction | Available | - |
| Franklin Outreach | 955.053/Anderson (Text) | 72350000132008 | Adult Nonfiction | Available | - |
| Goldsboro Library | 955.053 AND (Text) | 900005000301259 | Adult New Nonfiction | Checked out | 08/12/2026 |
| Harnett County Main Library | 955.053 And (Text) | 33630005426627 | Adult Nonfiction | Available | - |
| Henderson Main Branch | 955.053 A (Text) | 33258010480077 | Adult Nonfiction | Checked out | 08/07/2026 |
| Hudson (Fontana) | 955.053 AND (Text) | 39493108977549 | Adult Nonfiction | Available | - |
Accessibility Features
Summary:
"On New Year's Eve, 1977, on a state visit to Iran, President Jimmy Carter toasted Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, King of Kings, Light of the Aryans, Shadow of God on Earth, praising Iran as "an island of stability " due to "your leadership and the respect and admiration and love which your people give to you." Iran had the world's fifth largest army and was awash in billions of dollars in oil revenues. Construction cranes dotted the skyline of its booming capital, Tehran. The regime's feared secret police force SAVAK had crushed communist opposition, and the Shah had bought off the conservative Muslim clergy inside the country. He seemed invulnerable, and invaluable to the United States as an ally in the Cold War. Fourteen months later the Shah fled Iran into exile, forced from the throne by a volcanic religious revolution led by a fiery cleric named Ayatollah Khomeini. The ensuing hostage crisis forever damaged America's standing in the world. How could the United States, which had one of the largest CIA stations in the world and thousands of military personnel in Iran, have been so blind? The spellbinding story Scott Anderson weaves is one of a dictator blind to the disdain of his subjects and a superpower blundering into disaster. Scott Anderson tells this astonishing tale with the narrative brio, mordant wit, and keen analysis that made his bestselling Lawrence of Arabia one of the key texts in understanding the modern Middle East. The Iranian Revolution, Anderson convincingly argues, was as world-shattering an event as the French and Russian revolutions. In the Middle East, in India, in Southeast Asia, in Europe, and now in the United States, the hatred of economically-marginalized, religiously-fervent masses for a wealthy secular elite has led to violence and upheaval - and Iran was the template. King of Kings is a bravura work of history, and a warning."-- Dust jacket.
