All the Shah's Men

An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror

By: Stephen Kinzer

Narrated by: Michael Prichard, Jonathan Yen

Length: 11 hrs and 7 mins

Publisher's summary

Half a century ago, the United States overthrew the democratically elected prime minister of Iran, Mohammad Mossadegh, whose "crime" was nationalizing the country's oil industry. 

In a cloak-and-dagger story of spies, saboteurs, and secret agents, Kinzer reveals the involvement of Eisenhower, Churchill, Kermit Roosevelt, and the CIA in Operation Ajax, which restored Mohammad Reza Shah to power. Reza imposed a tyranny that ultimately sparked the Islamic Revolution of 1979 which, in turn, inspired fundamentalists throughout the Muslim world, including the Taliban and terrorists who thrived under its protection. 

"It is not far-fetched", Kinzer asserts, "to draw a line from Operation Ajax through the Shah's repressive regime and the Islamic Revolution to the fireballs that engulfed the World Trade Center in New York."

©2003 Stephen Kinzer (P)2003 Tantor Media, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Breezy storytelling and diligent research.... This stands as a textbook lesson in how not to conduct foreign policy." (Publishers Weekly)

"With a keen journalistic eye, and with a novelist's pen....a very gripping read." (The New York Times)

"Kinzer's brilliant reconstruction of the Iranian coup is made even more fascinating by the fact that it is true. It is as gripping as a thriller, and also tells much about why the United States is involved today in places like Afgahanistan and Iraq." (Gore Vidal)

Hard to please

Being fairly conservative, I expected a liberal slant from a New York Times reporter. I felt the book was well researched and very well written. I'll never remember all of the Middle Eastern names mentioned in the book but I received an education that helps me understand current events in a more enlightened frame of mind.

Great & timely read, but I'll avoid the reader

All the reviews laud the content, so let me submit my one gripe: the reader. I had to force myself to continue listening past the monotone and pedantic characteristics of the reader. I will actively avoid this reader from now on.

The Law of Unintended Consequences writ large

I already knew something about the events that Kinzer describes here, but he tells the tale in a captivating fashion with rich detail and excellent historical background. He presents his conclusions in a balanced way, but his case against this American involvement is very compelling and makes me shudder when I consider the unintended consequences that could result from our latest Gulf adventure. This as the stated intended consequence of a stable, democratic, and friendly Iraq is looking more and more like a pipe dream turning into a nightmare. Truman emerges from this story as a real hero with the longer view of the dangers while various British and American leaders (particularly the Dulles brothers) are shown to be blinded by their own arrogance and in the end brought about incalculable harm.

Great book

This compelling book couldn't be more timely. It presents a complex and nuanced understanding of the dynamics at play in the Middle East through the historical lens of Operation Ajax.

What a book!

Reads like a spy thriller, yet provides you deep insights into politics of Middle East and identifies the roots of 9/11.

The beginning of the end

THis was an absolutely great book on Iran/American history. After reading this book it is clear why IRAN dislikes us. It is not hard to understand why we bacame the target of extremeists by other middle east countries given our involvement in Iran int he 1950's. I never thought that just 50 years ago the American govt would lead a covert operation to overthrow a democracy and instal a represive monarchy. But that is exactly what happened. Now I am going to go read Charlie Wilson's War to find out how we armed these people we pissed off.

Wow, a great (and useful) read!

Kinzer tells a fascinating story that grabs your attention while providing detailed information about a historical topic that is still very salient today.

After finishing this book, one can't help but be fascinated by the fact that the US and British role in squelching Iranian democracy and installing their own puppet ruler is not more widely known. This book was very enlightening in helping me understand an important part of Iranian history; and one which still has a significant impact on middle east policy today. I found the level of detail and quality of storytelling superb.

Outstanding nonfiction title

Excellent book on US/Iran relations. The kind of thing our policymakers ought to be reading as they raise the level of din about Iran & its nuclear program & its mullah leaders. Our poor relationship with the Iran of today cannot be 100% traced back to our joint imperialist effort with Britain in the early-1950s, but there is certainly a line from that time to this. Mossadegh was no saint, the author makes that clear, but neither was he completely recalcitrant with the Shah & with the British oil interests. And he certainly was no communist. It was the weak-kneed Shah, his corrupt cronies (who ran the military) and the the British leaders pining away for the time "when the sun never set on the British Empire" who were most responsible for the state of the affairs back in 1950. Absolutely no doubt about that. And it was the Eisenhower Administration that made things happen (just as they would in Guatemala a year later). Sad. Anyhow, I thought the book was very well put together, unbiased, and very well narrated.

Should be mandatory reading for all kids in school

We should know the dark history of our Nation every bit as thoroughly as we know about its success. What a terrible thing we did in the days of the Red Scare.

Iran for Iranians

Despite the title, this audio does not have much to say about the Shah himself. I recall when he and his wife fled Iran, and it seemed he was a national leader, but not in this book. However, the emphasis is on the mistreatment of Iran, such as Great Britain's colonialist practices of stealing the raw materials of a country (oil), and when the natives complain, entice the USA to help them force Iran to continue shipping their oil to England. The British oil company made something like $100 million against $8 million for Iran. They don't need it; they've lived for thousands of years without electricity, the Brits said. When a popular leader arose and became prime minister in the early 1950s, a good man who stood up for his country and wanted to bring them into the 20th century, the USA decided to get rid of him--and did, altho it seems he was not murdered. Apparently the idea was that Iran would remain subject to the West. However, by putting a halt to developing democracy, we opened the door for the current fanatics to take over. We met the enemy, and indeed he IS us! We sowed the wind, and now we are reaping the whirlwind. Now: what have we done in other countries to cause them to hate us as they do?