Discovery!

Overview

A fascinating look at the beginning of America's relationship with Middle Eastern oil

Illuminating a little-known but extremely significant period in world historyâ€â€Âthe discovery of oil in the Middle East and the beginnings of what is now the Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco)â€â€Âthis captivating history explores the birth of the Middle Eastern oil industry. From the king and his royal court to the desert guides, scientists, and mechanics who built the original oil company, Aramco, the distant and desperately poor world of Depression-era Saudi Arabia is vividly brought to life. Written more than 50 years ago, this detailed account serves as a kind of time capsule and features the author’s prescient insights into the cultural and technological consequences of King Ibn Saud’s deliberate decision to choose America as his commercial ally.

Reviews

"Tells how Americans helped the Arabs find the natural resource buried under their deserts that would make them a major player in the world economy. If you want to know how we got into this mess, Stegner will tell you." â€â€ÂLibrary Journal

"A riveting picture of the desert kingdom before it was transformed by oil wealth." â€â€ÂWashington Post

"A grand adventure story." â€â€ÂLos Angeles Times

"A classic. A great American writer on the birth of Saudi Arabia's oil industry midst global crisesâ€â€Âand the collaboration across cultures that made it possible." â€â€ÂDaniel Yergin, Pultizer Prize-winning author, The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money and Power

"This is a fascinating and timely rediscovery. Wallace Stegner was the finest American writer to wander through early Saudi Arabia. His voice is all hereâ€â€Âsharp, clear, and entertaining." â€â€ÂSteve Coll, Pulitzer Prize–winning author, Ghost Wars

"For serious Stegner fans who want more of the master." â€â€ÂSeattle Times

"I was there in 1938 and lived part of this story, so I can vouch for the authenticity of Stegner's engaging and insightful narrative." â€â€ÂNestor Sander, author, Ibn Saud: King by Conquest

"[Stegner] anticipates the 'New Journalism' of Truman Capote and Tom Wolfe by a decade, unabashedly entering the minds of the people he writes about." â€â€ÂSan Jose Mercury News

Author Biography

Wallace Stegner is the author of more than 30 books, including the Pulitzer Prize–winning Angle of Repose. He established the creative writing program at Stanford University in 1945. Thomas W. Lippman is an adjunct scholar at the Middle East Institute. He is the author of Egypt After Nasser, Inside the Mirage: America's Fragile Partnership with Saudi Arabia, Madeline Albright and the New American Diplomacy, and Understanding Islam. He has traveled extensively in Saudi Arabia as a reporter and diplomat on behalf of the Washington Post. He lives in Washington, DC.