Product Description

On November 4, 1979, Iranian militants stormed the United States Embassy in Tehran and took sixty-six Americans captive. Thus began the Iran Hostage Crisis, an affair that captivated the American public for 444 days and marked America's first confrontation with the forces of radical Islam. Using hundreds of recently declassified government documents, historian David Farber takes the first in-depth look at the hostage crisis, examining its lessons for America's contemporary War on Terrorism.

Unlike other histories of the subject, Farber's vivid and fast-paced narrative looks beyond the day-to-day circumstances of the crisis, using the events leading up to the ordeal as a means for understanding it. The book paints a portrait of the 1970s in the United States as an era of failed expectations in a nation plagued by uncertainty and anxiety. It reveals an American government ill prepared for the fall of the Shah of Iran and unable to reckon with the Ayatollah Khomeini and his militant Islamic followers.

Farber's account is filled with fresh insights regarding the central players in the crisis: Khomeini emerges as an astute strategist, single-mindedly dedicated to creating an Islamic state. The Americans' student-captors appear as less-than-organized youths, having prepared for only a symbolic sit-in with just a three-day supply of food. ABC news chief Roone Arledge, newly installed and eager for ratings, is cited as a critical catalyst in elevating the hostages to cause célèbre status.

Throughout the book there emerge eerie parallels to the current terrorism crisis. Then as now, Farber demonstrates, politicians failed to grasp the depth of anger that Islamic fundamentalists harbored toward the United States, and Americans dismissed threats from terrorist groups as the crusades of ineffectual madmen.

Taken Hostage is a timely and revealing history of America's first engagement with terrorism and Islamic fundamentalism, one that provides a chilling reminder that the past is only prologue.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #322587 in Books
• Published on: 2006-07-24
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

From Publishers Weekly
For 444 days in 1979–1981, Americans watched, with a mix of frustration and helplessness, the unfolding of the Iran hostage crisis and the withering of the Carter presidency. While Farber, a professor at Temple University, presents a detailed picture of the coming of the Iranian revolution, the rise of Islamic fundamentalism and the United States' inability to see and deal effectively with either, at the heart of his tale is America. Farber satisfyingly contextualizes the moment, vividly redrawing stagflation, the energy crisis and national malaise. Neither the Shah nor his American supporters saw how powerful Islamic forces had become, viewing the threat as "Soviet Red and not Islamic Green"; Carter failed first to grasp the nature of the threat and later to act effectively. Khomeini comes off as a shrewd strategist, using the hostages to both consolidate his growing power and unite his nation. While the commentary on contemporary politics is rather speculative, Farber gives a needed history lesson on the depth of political anger in the Islamic world and on the United States' incapacity to communicate its message.
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Publisher's Weekly
"Farber gives a needed history lesson on the depth of political anger in the Islamic world".

Review
Farber . . . provides a fascinating glimpse into how events in Iran capped for Americans a decade of unfulfilled expectations and widespread disillusionment in the wake of the Watergate scandal, the fall of Saigon and a spiraling energy crisis.
(Reza Aslan The Nation )

While Farber presents a detailed picture of the coming of the Iranian revolution, the rise of Islamic fundamentalism and the United States' inability to see the deal effectively with either, at the heart of his tale is America. Farber satisfyingly contextualizes the moment, vividly redrawing stagflation, the energy crisis and national malaise. . . . Farber gives a needed history lesson on the depth of political anger in the Islamic world and on the United States' incapacity to communicate its message.
(Publishers Weekly )

Readers who want to explore the causes of the current war on terrorism should read this cogent recounting of the hostage crisis of the 1970s. Unlike earlier accounts, which were written before September 11, 2001, Farber's work forcefully demonstrates that the United States can no longer ignore the popularity of fundamental Islam in Muslim nations or the all-too-widespread contempt for American democracy in these countries.
(Karl Helicher ForeWord Magazine )

David Farber's book demonstrates that Americans--then as now--understood neither the foe that confronted them nor its motives.
(hony McRoy, "Muslim World Book Review )

Customer Reviews

Great Overview but Look Elsewhere for More Depth
I really enjoyed the book. It's an area of history that I've seen skimmed over in class after class. For me, this was an excellent jumping off point for looking into the Iran Hostage Crisis. The research is good, and the author incorporates good primary source documentation. Yet, this book still remains a general overview of what happened, focusing more on the U.S. side of things rather than what actually happened in Iran. It's a balanced history; I was just hoping it went a little more in depth.

"Taken Hostage"
Very good coverage of before, during, and after this act of war.
Taken Hostage: The Iran Hostage Crisis and America's First Encounter with Radical Islam (Politics and Society in Twentieth Century America)

More than a mere account of historical events
This book is an outstandingly researched work and I applaud Farber's thoroughness. I just finished writing my final research paper for my historical methods class on the Iran hostage crisis and this text was an indispensable resource.

It is so much more than just an account of the hostage crisis. Farber really delves beneath the surface of the events and decisions related to the crisis. He paints a picture for the reader of the sentiments prevalent among the citizenries of both the United States and Iran. He goes further by describing the reasons behind those sentiments. This puts the decisions made by the Carter administration, the actions taken by the Iranians, and the reactions to both of these by the American public in a context and framework essential to understanding the hostage crisis and its related issues. Highly Recommended.