Job Discussion Forums

[philipjames]

I'm contemplating taking a job in Saudi Arabia. Can anyone recommend a decent book on the country for someone visiting/working there for the first time? What book did you personally find most informative in relation to culture, society etc?

Thanks in advance,

Jameson

[Never Ceased To Be Amazed]

The Koran...

NCTBA

[realt]

How about a book on flight departures from the kingdom, you'll enjoy perusing that while you're in Saudi.
Although, the koran is the no1 selling book there by far. Everything you need to know is in that.

[Never Ceased To Be Amazed]

[veiledsentiments]

There are a number of books on Saudi, but probably none that will really prepare you for living there.

I would do a search on Amazon.

VS

[Never Ceased To Be Amazed]

"Death of a Princess" comes to mind...but, wuz that only a documentary or did it get published in book form?

NCTBA

[johnslat]

I still think that "Catch-22" and the "Alice" books (Lewis Carroll) can prepare you for living in Saudi better than most, if not all, non-fiction.

Regards,
John

[svatopluk]

Girls From Riyadh - just read it out of curiosity, and although very girly it does shed light on the Saudi (rich) female's mindset.

[Demigod]

It depends on what interest you most.
The Quran concentrates on religion and
a guide to a righteous life..

I do not think that will properly sum up
life and most of the people in Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia is slowly trying to blend a Western
mindset with a Sharia way of life. This
process is slow. It has many faults and bad leadership.
It is few books that properly define present day Saudi
Arabia. I recommend you to take the job..if you need the
money.

[Vancouver Girl]

Hello Jameson;

You might find these books helpful. I have never been to Saudi Arabia...but I have lived and worked in Abu Dhabi, Malaysia and Indonesia and I 've found these writers au fait in terms of the Islamic world in general.

Cities of Salt by A. Muniz (I think) This is a Saudi writing about the hypocrasy of the oil industry and gov't in KSA.

Bernard Lewis (author) An Orientalist at Princeton...any of his books are recommended.

Among the Believers and Beyond Belief. both by VS Naipal..for me..two must-reads for anyone thinking of living in that part of the world.

If you'd like to contact me privately I can give you more suggestions.

Vancouver Girl

[Cuffs]

Despite its sensationalist title, Saudi Arabia Exposed: Inside a Kingdom in Crisis by John R. Bradley is a very good, and level-headed read.

An Arabic-speaking Westerner who seized a rare opportunity to travel freely throughout Saudi Arabia, Bradley offers a dense, abstract study that reads more like the "culture and history" section of a guidebook than a juicy, insider account. But Bradley did get access to high-profile Saudis, most memorably to Osama bin Laden's nephew, with whom Bradley went on a picnic. An accomplished journalist and scholar who prefers facts to sensory-let alone salacious-details, Bradley successfully compiles research, information, geographical data and flat-footed descriptions of observed events to explain the political dynamics and historical roots of a strong authoritarian state, characterized particularly by the close relation between the Al-Saud ruling family and the conservative Wahhabis. He conveys a sense of a country fraught with fear, hostility and suspicion while remaining aloof from much of the drama he describes. Bradley is at his best when he writes about the press, providing what is truly an insider's look and untangling some of the knotted ties between the media, the Saudi government and the United States.

[veiledsentiments]

[Sheikh N Bake]

Well....not to say VS is that, but most people in these parts who complain about "pro-Zionist" and profess anti-Zionism are actually antisemitic. Some are locals and some are victims of a kind of Stockholm syndrome because of their vested interests--they work here, they make their money here, their bread and butter.

My second day on this job, two different locals told me how members of the approved religion are required to hate Jews (whether that's true or not is beside the point; the point is how people think) and that God wants all Jews dead. Yes, they said that. I have to put up with this at work. In Dubai and Abu Dhabi I knew perfectly nice Arabs who also happened to see Jews under every bed and in every closet and behind every lunatic conspiracy theory. Not Israelis, Jews.

Personally I don't care what locals think, and I like them where I am, although the hate speech is offensive. If you counter with the predictable "Oh, there's hate speech everywhere," I would say it's less pervasive in more sophisticated societies.

My recommended book...Maybe "The Seven Pillars of Wisdom."

[veiledsentiments]

Hate speech is always offensive... but one must always remember that Arabs are Semites too. So, there are plenty of anti-Semites on both sides of this divide. It is a phrase that is overused to the point of meaninglessness.

Whether you read Lewis and Patai or Chomsky and Fisk... you need to factor in their politics and point of view. I read all four. The problem is when one only gets one side's views. (rather like the US political knowledge or lack thereof of someone who only watches Fox)

VS

[Vancouver Girl]

Actually, I've always found Bernard Lewis to be very informative and entertaining. He takes an extremely complicated history and makes it quite readable. Certainly, he has a point of view...but it is just that...a point of view that the reader can accept or reject as he sees fit. I personally find Chomsky, Edward Said and Harold Pinter to be extremely biased...occasionally I agree with their biases...generally, I don't. But I would never refer to any of their writings as "crap".
When I'm in the States I love to watch MSNBC, the Daily Show and Newshour on PBS (actually, we get all this in Canada as well). A lot of people would call me biased, and misinformed... because of my news preferences. Well, so be it.

BTW...Jameson, just finished a great book by a Finacial Times columnist-Christopher Caldwell- entitled "The Revolution in Europe"...very provocative. Same general theme as the above books...the clash/marriage of Islam and the West. Put it on your Kindle!