The Contemporary Middle East provides an accessible introduction to the regionÂ's most pressing concerns and enduring conflicts. It includes provocative contributions by an impressive array of leading scholars journalists and policy advisors. Contributors include notable academic authors Arthur Goldschmidt Jr. the late William L. Cleveland Shibley Telhami David W. Lesch Bernard Reich and Phebe Marr complemented by selections from recent general-interest books by Marwan Bishara Mark Perry and Eugene Rogan among others. With twelve new chapters the third edition is a probing examination of the current affairs of the Middle East. Its multiple readings on strategic pairings of topics (Israel and the Palestinians Iraq and Iran Egypt and Syria) illuminate the regionÂ's key issues from a variety of perspectives. Part- and chapter-opening summaries help establish background and context and a new concluding chapter by Shibley Telhami written specifically for this volume candidly addresses fundamental questions about the United States and the Middle East today. Student resources include an annotated table of contents a select bibliography a glossary brief biographies of notable persons a chronology and a summary of recent events in addition to numerous maps. Language: English