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Grand Delusion: The Rise and Fall of American Ambition in the Middle East

Steven Simon

Culture, humanities & social science

Grand Delusion: The Rise and Fall of American Ambition in the Middle East

By Steven Simon, Robert E. Wilhelm Fellow in the Center for International Studies

Penguin · 2023

The culmination of almost 40 years at the highest levels of policymaking and scholarship, "Grand Delusion" offers a comprehensive and deeply informed account of U.S. engagement in the Middle East. This story, while episodically impressive, was too often tragic and at times dishonorable. As we enter a new era in foreign policy, this is an essential book, a cautionary history that illuminates American's propensity for self-deception and misadventure at a moment when the nation is redefining its engagement with a world in crisis.

From Summer 2023 recommended reading from MIT (MIT News). Cover image via Google Books.