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The Persian Sphinx: Amir Abbas Hoveyda and the Riddle of the Iranian Revolution, by Abbas Milani. Washington, DC: Mage Publishers, 2000. xvii + 399 pages. Notes to p. 383. Index to p. 399. $29.95.
Reviewed by James A. Bill
Amir `Abbas Hoveyda lived in revolutionary times and died a gruesome death as a human byproduct of those times. Hoveyda served as Prime Minister of Iran for nearly 13 years-- longer than anyone in modern Iranian history. Hoveyda painted the protective varnish over the rule of Muhammad Reza Shah Pahlavi and, in the process, he became a lighting rod for the Shah's repressive rule. While most members of the Shah's elite fled the country at the time of the revolution, Hoveyda chose to stay behind. Already fired by the Shah and used as a scapegoat for Pahlavi rule, Hoveyda had the guts and grit to face the ugly proceedings of revolutionary courts gone berserk. On 7 April 1979, he paid for it with his life when, after a perfunctory trial, revolutionary thugs executed him by firing three bullets into his head.
The story of Hoveyda is in many ways the story of the Iranian revolution. In this beautifully written biography of Hoveyda, Abbas Milani provides us with a superb analysis of Iran and its poorly understood revolution. Milani skillfully weaves the story of Hoveyda into the revolutionary tale of Iran. Few studies of the Iranian revolution can match the objectivity and persuasiveness of this volume.
In his persona, Amir `Abbas Hoveyda carried all the...