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SAUDI ARABIA Culture and Customs of Saudi Arabia, by David E. Long. Westport, CT and London, UK: Greenwood Press, 2005. xv + 110 pages. Map. Chron. Color photos. Gloss, to p. 114. Bibl. to p. 118. Index to p. 124. $49.95.
Reviewed by Deborah S. Akers
David E. Long's Culture and Customs of Saudi Arabia, geared toward a non-specialist lay audience, gives an easily accessible account of modern Saudi Arabian society and culture. Well written and easy to read, the book reflects the author's insights and observations acquired while living and working in the Kingdom as a diplomat with the US Department of State. A long-time consultant on Middle East and Islamic politics and international terrorism, Long incorporates material often difficult to access by the general reader. Framing his narrative within a historical and ecological context, he attempts to render understandable to readers what he describes as a historically inaccessible, highly conservative, and traditional society confronted and struggling with the present-day forces of modernization and globalization.
Long's objective is to enable his readers to acquire an...