A History of Iran: Empire of the Mind

This is an excellent exposition of Iranian history surveying the nation's history through the age of empire from the times of Cyrus the Great to the present government led by the Islamic Republic. One of the first things that will surprise you about this book is how extensive but yet quickly you will be able to move through the time periods of Persian history. The book starts by describing Persia from the first true Persian Dynasty, the Achaemenid dynasty, followed by the Seleucid, Parthian, Sassanid, Umayyad, Abassid, Saffavid, Qajar, and Phavali dynasties. The chapters are linked together by stories and important historical developments in each era and transistions smoothly by describing the fall and the rise of the subsequent powers. In addition, the author dedicated an extensive chapter to the acomplishment of Persian poets including works of Rumi, Saadi, Hafez, and Iraqi. It is most interesting to understand the role of poetry and its development in Persian history. The symbolism of the poetic works corresponds to subjects such as love, power, war, and life. However, I find the ones involving love most perxplexing and the usage of the term "wine" as the metaphor for love. The symbolic, which are mostly subliminal, of these poems are truly influential. So if you are someone who wants to thumb through a well composed survey of Iran's history, culture, and people this book is definitely the right one for you. It is always breathtaking to see how civilizations can influence each other in the most subtle manner and thus have profound effects just as how people may influence each other.

This book can be considered a starting point for any newcomer to Iranian history. It is, without a doubt, a major contribution to the popular history genre. While Iran/Persia is one of the great empires, Axworthy implies that it is also an empire of the mind, a virtual empire that transcends the western concept of the geopolitical state. The book follows Iran's chronological history from pre-Achaemenid times to the present. It is well researched and has extensive footnotes and references allowing the reader to delve into details of any event or subject. Yet, it is eminently readable and has the tone of a lively and informative lecture rather than an erudite tome. The book binds all the varied elements of Iranian culture (a multi-lingual, multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-religion mélange of peoples) into a single story line. It provides a factual, but simplified, picture of a multiplicity of societies who consider themselves Iranian regardless of the proclivity of their present governments. The reader is forced to re-evaluate the common notions of Iran as a homogeneous entity and recognize it as a hodgepodge of different groups who are bound by a common belief in the uniqueness of their civilization, culture and history. Perhaps the greatest contribution of the book is the portrayal of Iranian minorities. It is no small feat to trace their histories in the Iranian context. Yet, as Axworthy implies, it is their historical contributions and continued existence that make Iranian culture unique. It would be a sad day if any government forced uniformity on such a great and diverse culture. The book does not cover everything (that would require an encyclopedia) but it misses some points. For instance, it discusses the Council of Guardians but does not cover another key element of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic - the Council of Experts. This is the Council that was responsible for appointing Ayatollah Khamenei as "supreme leader", a decision that involved considerable internal debate. Further, in theory, this Council can remove the supreme leader if it finds him unfit to rule. This is no small power considering the current turmoil Iran and is certainly worth mentioning. However, in spite of such minor omissions, the book is accurate, immensely readable and truly major contribution to Iranian history.

"In A History of Iran, acclaimed historian Michael Axworthy chronicles the rich history of this complex nation from the Achaemenid Empire of sixth century BC to the revolution of 1979 to today, including a close look at Iran's ongoing attempts to become a nuclear power. A History of Iran offers general readers an essential guide to understanding this volatile nation, which is once again at the center of the world's attention." A great book to read, especially today when tensions with Iran are running so high. Axworthy delivers a book everyone should read, hopefully giving people an understanding of Iran that goes beyond what political figures would like you to believe.

I was looking for a comprehensive book on Iranian history, and this is definitely the best one. It strikes a good tone between academic and popular history, and I loved the descriptions of poetry and religious movements. The only downside is that the history is so condensed that huge topics get very short thrift. I will have to follow up with narrower books on specific periods or issues. This is a good entry point to do so.

i have done many books on iran, a teaching company course on the persian empire & have visited the country in 2011 so this book does not go into a lot of detail that i have not already been exposed to; axworthy is a good writer & very objective; if one knows little about iran & its history, this is a good start; the country is very misunderstood in the USA since the 1979 revolution & before that due to the bias of our views & the influence of the israeli lobby who was very pro iran when the shah was in power; i have little doubt the iranian people will change the theocratic dictatorship they now have, it will take time but it will be done; i do believe the worse thing we can do is attack with israel this country & unite the people behind this bad government as iraq did when they started the war in 1980; had i less info re this country i would have rated this book better; i want to read his newer book on iran from the 1979 revolution to the present

Ein absolutes muss für jeden der auch nur ein winziges, ja sogar fast verschwindendes Interesse an der Geschichte dieser grossen Nation hat. Sie/ er wird zweifellos begeistert und hingerissen sein.

Gostei bastante. O autor foi muito bem sucedido em escrever um livro didático e de leitura fácil em relação a um país que tem uma história extensa, cheia de personagens e informações. Também gostei de o enfoque não ser somente em reis e batalhas, há informações sobre sociedade, as várias religiões que se formaram na Pérsia e um capítulo somente sobre poesia persa. O enfoque dado aos diversos períodos históricos é equitativa, porém é um bom livro para se entender todo o complexo contexto do Irã atual (o texto da versão que eu comprei, capa comum, termina em meados de 2015) de uma forma resumida e concisa.

This book is an excellent introduction to the history of Iran, blending detailed historical facts with engaging storytelling. It covers key events, cultural developments, and political shifts in a way that’s easy to follow yet deeply insightful. Perfect for both casual readers and history enthusiasts looking to understand Iran’s rich and complex past. Highly recommend

Before I read this book I basically knew three things about Iran: (1) There was an ancient Persian empire centred on the same basic geographic area as modern Iran, (2) modern Iran is the implacable adversary of the United States, the west in general, and Israel, and (3) Iranian culture and history is different from that of the surrounding Arab world. But how we got from the ancient empire of the Medes and Persians to the modern Islamic republic and its Ayatollahs, I had no idea. So I decided to fill this gap in my knowledge, looked up some books online, found this one highly recommended, and purchased it. I’m very glad I did. In this book, Michael Axworthy tells the story of Iran (Persia) from the Achaemenid Empire of sixth century B.C. to the present-day Islamic Republic. Obviously, when you are narrating a 2,600 year history in the space of 315 pages, there is going to be a lot of summarising, and I certainly got the sense, as I was reading this book, that there is a lot more than could be said! Nonetheless, for a person like me, who was almost entirely ignorant about the sweep of Iranian/Persian history, this book was the perfect place to start, and it has whetted my appetite to pursue the subject and learn more. Of course, the story of modern Iran is developing all the time. This book was originally published in 2007 and an epilogue was added in 2016. Now the story has moved on yet again, and five years from now it may well be completely different. But every book of history has to end somewhere, and the interested reader who wants to pursue the story will have no difficulty finding further sources. Without hesitation, I give this book five stars out of five.

A good book usefull to start knowing Iran history.