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The cover of King of Kings

King of Kings

Scott Anderson, 2025

How did Washington and the shah miss a revolution in plain sight? Scott Anderson traces the hubris, delusion and miscalculation behind Iran's 1979 upheaval.

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21 parts, about 33 minutes to read.

Why read it

  • Argues Iran's revolution was not inevitable but turned on a few men, their hesitations, blind spots and tiny circles of advisers
  • Shows how repression and flattery starved an autocrat of the truth, and how an ally's dependence blinded it in turn
  • Rebuilds the collapse almost day by day from diplomats and insiders, puncturing popular myths and inflated death tolls

Who it is for

  • Readers trying to understand how modern Iran came to be
  • Foreign policy watchers studying intelligence and diplomatic failure
  • Leaders who worry their advisers only bring good news

What the summary covers

  1. A Revolution Few Saw Coming3 min
  2. A King Who Waited for Others to Act2 min
  3. Protect Me1 min
  4. Oil Prices Soar2 min
  5. The Autocrat's Trap2 min
  6. A Visit That Backfired1 min
  7. The Spark2 min
  8. Ritual and Conspiracy1 min
  9. The Fire at Cinema Rex1 min
  10. Black Friday2 min
  11. Khomeini Goes to Paris1 min
  12. Washington Divided2 min
  13. A Hidden Illness1 min
  14. Selling Khomeini to the West1 min
  15. The King Cannot Decide1 min
  16. The Shah Leaves1 min
  17. Two American Policies1 min
  18. The Army Stands Aside2 min
  19. Revolutionary Justice1 min
  20. The Embassy Falls3 min
  21. What Went Wrong2 min

Recommended by

  • Sebastian JungerAuthor of The Perfect Storm
    Anderson uses his incomparable prose to crack open the deep story behind one of the most momentous events of the last decades.

About the author

  • Scott AndersonAmerican writer and war correspondent
    • Born in Sebastopol, California
    • MFA in creative writing from the University of Iowa Writer's Workshop
    • Began war reporting in 1983
    • Veteran war correspondent who has reported from Lebanon, Israel, Egypt, Northern Ireland, Chechnya, Sudan, Bosnia, El Salvador and other countries
    • Contributing writer for the New York Times Magazine; work also in Vanity Fair, Esquire, Harper's and Outside
    • His 2017 book Fractured Lands: How the Arab World Came Apart gives an account of the Arab Spring
    • Author of Lawrence in Arabia, an international bestseller and National Book Critics Circle finalist

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