Libya is coming in from the cold, but for most of the three decades following Mu'ammar al-Qadhafi's self-styled revolution in 1969, the country was politically isolated and labeled a pariah state. Dirk Vandewalle, one of only a handful of Western scholars to visit the country during this time, is intimately acquainted with Libya. He offers a lucid and comprehensive account of Libya's past, and corrects some of the misunderstandings about its present.
The story begins in the 1900s with a portrait of Libya's desert terrain and the personalities that shaped its development. Professor Vandewalle then covers Libya's history during the Italian colonial period (1911-1943) and the monarchy that ruled between 1951 and 1969. He goes on to discuss the subsequent regime of Colonel Qadhafi and the economic, political, and ideological developments that he engendered.
Finally, he describes the most recent events that brought Libya back into the international fold.
As the first comprehensive history of Libya over the last two decades, this book will be welcomed by scholars and students of North Africa, the Middle East, and by those who are visiting and doing business in the region.
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