Middle East Books

Walking the Bible: A Photographic Journey

Bruce Feiler

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 16 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

"The process of gathering these images reminded me of the Bible's effortless ability to reinvent itself for each generation and each new way of searching."
—Bruce Feiler

Its stories may be the best known in the world, but its locations have long been a mystery. Where did Noah's ark land? Where did Moses receive the Ten Commandments? Where are the lost cities of Sodom and Gomorrah? Now, in Walking the Bible: A Photographic Journey, New York Times bestselling author Bruce Feiler offers an unprecedented heart-stirring adventure through the landscape of some of history's most storied events.

Featuring Bruce Feiler's own photography as well as his selections from professional collections, Walking the Bible: A Photographic Journey brings together breathtaking vistas, intimate portraits, and fascinating panoramas, providing firsthand access to the inscrutable land where three of the world's great religions were born—and finally puts a face on the stories that have long inspired the human spirit.

Over several years, Feiler traveled nearly ten thousand miles through the deserts of the Middle East, which led first to his runaway national bestseller Walking the Bible. This new illustrated book follows his route, offering a thrilling photographic voyage through the actual places of some of the Bible's most memorable events—from the heights of Mount Ararat, where Noah's ark landed, to the desert outpost in Turkey, where Abraham first heard the words of God, to the summit where Moses overlooked the Promised Land.

Walking the Bible: A Photographic Journey chronicles a landscape that nurtured the relationship between humans and the divine, breathing new meaning into stories that have been a timeless source of inspiration.

Inside Iran

Mark Edward Harris

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Eye and Mind Opener 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

The breadth and scope of text and photos are remarkable. The sights are memorable, the insights unforgetable.

Editorial Review:

The Islamic Republic of Iran is at the center of world attention politically, socially, and culturally—but it remains largely a cipher to the West. Award-winning photographer Mark Edward Harris has traveled throughout Iran to produce the first contemporary photographic book on a place seldom seen or understood. His images of daily life offer a fascinating look at a society of juxtapositions—ancient and modern, commercial and spiritual, serene and intense, political and personal. With chapter introductions and extended captions providing context for the images, Inside Iran is a crucial look at a country whose future is likely to influence our own.

Thailand: The Golden Kingdom

William Warren, Luca Invernizzi Tettoni

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

The Golden Kingdom 5 out of 5 stars.
12 of 12 people found this review helpful.

This is a great coffee table book! At a reasonable price. It is loaded with beautiful photography of many different aspects of Thailand. If you love Thailand you will love this book. If you know nothing of Thailand this book will make you want to learn more. When your friends see it they will be ooing and aawing.

Thailand: The Golden Kingdom 4 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

This was a gift for a friend that loves Thailand and lived and traveled there extensively. He loved this book. It is a great reminder of all he loved about such a beautiful country.

Editorial Review:

Over 140 stunning full color photographs illustrate the history, culture art of this fascinatingly beautiful and diverse land.

Aerial Atlas of the Holy Land: Discover the Great Sites of History from the Air

John Bowker

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Editorial Review:

The great historical sites of the Holy Land -- seen from a unique perspective

Forever timely and compelling, the Holy Land is steeped in religious and historical significance. In 2007, its natural beauty and unparalleled biblical and archaeological heritage attracted more than 2.6 million tourists.

Now, thanks to aerial photography from a single, exceptionally high-quality and up-to-date source, the Aerial Atlas of the Holy Land reveals the ancient crossroads of Galilee, Samaria and Judea as never before seen in book form. Included are 36 sites of great Jewish, Christian or Muslim significance dating to Roman, Persian and Crusader times.

The informative text adds historical, religious and cultural context to this superb photographic survey of the Holy Land. Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Nazareth are featured, as are such other key locations as Caesarea, Philippi, Cana, Qumran, Jericho, Mount Hermon, the Carmel Caves, Tiberias, Dor and the Sea of Galilee.

Additional features include:

• A full-color, two-page map detailing the cities and towns, physical features, transportation facilities and other aspects of the Holy Land today.
• Bibliography
• General Reading List

This breathtaking aerial portrait, with its authoritative text and supporting materials, celebrates the grandeur of one of the most famous areas of the world, bringing it to life for general readers as well as tourists and pilgrims.

Israel Through My Lens: Sixty Years As a Photojournalist

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Terrific book. 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

As a photographer, I loved this book. As good as the photographs are, the writing is even better. Great stories about working as a Time photographer in the Mid East, growing up in Europe during WWII, and wonderful vignettes about Israeli leaders. Highly recommended.

Insight and inspiration 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

David Rubinger has laid it out as he saw it and lived it. This is a VERY personal book with little if anything held back. From his youth to the present, Rubinger gives a verbal as well as photographic picture of himself and the Sate of Israel growing up, maturing and "getting on". From his time in the British army to the horrific death of a woman he cared for deeply, this book tells it all. It is easy reading yet compelling. I was carried into a very personal environment and felt as if I were at each event, meeting each person, taking part in each "adventure". David Rubinger's life appears to be a string of wonderful and not-so-wonderful experiences. And you are right there. The country comes alive through the eyes and life of this exceptional man. I have read it twice and have given it as gifts to friends. Oh, yes, I highly recommend this book!!

Editorial Review:

The compelling autobiography of Israel's preeminent photojournalist, illustrated with his most memorable images.

Life: Places of the Bible: A Photographic Pilgrimage

Editors of Life Magazine

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Viewing pleasure OH MY how beautiful 5 out of 5 stars.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.

I have to say this book is a must buy...the pictures are amazing if you appreciate bible places. the writing of the book is accurate to the places in the bible and you really can appreciate this book especially when to visit won't happen anytime soon due to the war torn situation happening to a lot of those location pictured. the only and I mean only suggestion I would give this book is for example: the photographs should of had their own caption to explain where the picture was taken, when was it taken and taken by who photographer if the pictures had more detail of their location it would of been 5+ stars!!!! but have to tell you a must have book to own in your collection ESPECIALLY ON THAT COFFEE TABLE PEOPLE WILL PICK THIS BOOK UP AND LOOK!!!!!!!!!!!

Editorial Review:

There is of course a real Mount, and there is a Sea of Galilee. There are the plains of Abraham, and there are mountain caves where writings from the Biblical age have been lately discovered. This special keepsake volume, takes you to sites prominent in both the Old and New Testaments, explaining during our journey the intertwining histories of two of the world's great faiths: Judaism and Christianity. (At the same time, the importance of Abraham and other Biblical figures to Islam unfolds.) Come and take this stirring walk with us. Never has such a book been more timely than today.

Iraq: A War

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Editorial Review:

Risking their lives, intrepid journalists and photographers from across the globe have laboured in often desperate and dangerous conditions to bring images of war-torn Iraq to the attention of the world. "Iraq - A War" brings together some of the most moving and indeed controversial pictures the world has ever seen - an Iraqi boy trying to study with a bandaged eye, a bullet-riddled Red Crescent Ambulance, soldiers and Iraqi citizens alike praying, babies in coffins, bloody body parts kept on ice, and triumphant soldiers relaxing in one of Saddam Hussein's palaces. Each picture imagines the world beyond the edge of the frame and shows the true face of the occupation of Iraq.

Living in Istanbul (Living In . . .)

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Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Istanbul has been the capital of Roman emperors, Byzantine despots, and Turkish sultans. Stretching along both sides of the Bosporus from the Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea, it occupies one of the most extraordinary geographical locations on earth. Vestiges of the diverse cultures that have flourished here-- Greek, Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman-- survive in modern Istanbul, where different quarters are still divided by what the Byzantine poet Procopius once called a 'garland of waters.'

In this superb volume, the authors reveal the unique lifestyle and hidden splendours of Istanbul, inciting us to discover an infinite variety of charming private homes, delicate wooden yalis, and magnificent palaces on the European and Asian shores of the Bosporus. These sumptuous dwellings-- whether modern or traditional, intimate or spectacular-- are imbued with the magic of the water and light, of copper and wood, and a sophisticated combination of Eastern and Western influences.

Plunging into the daily life of the bustling city, the exotic Covered Bazaar and celebrated Egyptian Market beckon, where, after sampling the delicious local products, tired visitors may pause for a refreshing glass of tea in a sidewalk café. In the hans-- former caravan depots which now serve as workshops for traditional craftsmen-- kilims, carpets, painted tiles, and other marvelous creations abound, and the sacred art of calligraphy is still practiced.

Stunning photographs by Jérôme Darblay, specially commissioned for this volume, unveil the secrets of this ancient city, while an extensive visitor's guide to hotels, restaurants, traditional shops, museums and other attractions provides information for the discriminating traveller to discover Istanbul's thousand-and-one delights.

Iraq: The Space Between

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Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

During the American-led invasion of Iraq in 2003 Christoph Bangert was still attending photography school. Only later, in the spring of 2005, when the Iraqi insurgency and sectarian violence reached its first peak, Westerners were kidnapped and beheaded, and most foreign journalists had left the country, did this intrepid photographer start to work in Iraq on assignment for The New York Times. The overtly hostile environment in Iraq for foreigners, without regard of the individual’s intention or affiliation, restricts the freedom of journalists, particularly photographers, who (unlike writers) must be physically present in order to get the story. Despite these conditions Bangert remained in Iraq as one of the few Western photographers committed to cover the war throughout 2006 and early 2007. He has worked largely independently from the military, using Iraqi guards, drivers, and translators, but was also occasionally embedded with American, British, and Iraqi forces. Iraq: The Space Between records the distance he traveled as a civilian between worlds committed to destruction in the name of freedom.

Allah O Akbar

Abbas

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Total reviews: 6 Average rating: 3.0 of 5

Reinforcing negative stereotypes. 1 out of 5 stars.
13 of 27 people found this review helpful.

The apparent contempt that the author has for his subject, Islam and the Muslim world, makes this an unfortunately one-dimensional book, lacking in both insight and sensitivity. Through his highly subjective choice of photographic material the author has succeeded in heightening every prejudice, reinforcing every misconception, and exacerbating the deepening divide between the Islamic and Western worlds. The subject of Abbas' interviews implies that Muslims the world over are as ignorant as they are belligerent. He certainly confirms his reputation as "one of the few photographers who can raise photojournalism to an art form" but the only cost of sensationalism is honesty. A small price to pay for the artist who would rather 'inspire' than depict the truth in all its banality. He states that "poverty is not natural" and maintains that "young people find refuge in the Koran and in Islamist institutions when racism and chronic unemployment become unbearable." The shallow implication of this statement being that those who can attain relative gains (i.e. people with jobs) will not need the emotional and spiritual crutch provided by religion. But does spiritual hunger always arise from material limitation and need? Caricatures will suffice for the childish mind. Black and white photography dramatises contrast. It is my hope, however, that there will be readers who realise that not everything is black and white.

Editorial Review:

"Allah O Akbar" begins the call to prayer that resonates from minarets in towns and villages from Sinkiang to Morocco, from Paris to Timbuktu. Wherever in the world you are, the message is the same: "God is Great". It is also, however, the cry of fundamentalists throughout the lands of the faithful. Abbas, a member of the prestigious agency Magnum, spent seven years travelling through the Islamic world taking the photographs for this book. As a photojournalist he has covered major political events in the Third World, including wars and revolutions, and is driven by a desire to understand and expose the internal strains pulling within Muslim societies, Abbas takes a "telling" picture, and the immediacy and subtlety of the photographic images create a constant visual stimulus.