Babylon: Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilizaton - Pau Kriwaczek

A well-written overview of the rise of Mesopotamia and its permutations as Babylon and Assyria.

Lots of interesting bits of information jump out:
- how early we developed many of our current staples of diet: bread, cheese, beer, wine
- how early the basic structures of commerce and finance emerged
- the transformation from religious, egalitarian society to kings/dictators when conflict first arises between the various cities in the Mesopotamian basin
- that the Assyrians were the first to develop segregation of women, veiling, and the notion of inferior status, cultural trends that were later adopted by Judaism, Islam and the Byzantines/Greeks
- Babylonians were the first to develop the notion of one godhead; the concept of transcendent god as opposed to immanent god, or god in forces of nature - also the idea of god being above nature and, by extension, man being above nature as he is made in the image of god (again, especially influential on the Old Testament)

For further reading in this area, a great source for Bibliography, links etc.

In particular:
Early Mesopotamia:  Society and Economy at the Dawn of History - J. N. Postgate

A History of the Ancient Near East - Marc van de Mieroop

The Might that was Assyria - Henry W. F. Sagg

Geopolitics of Emotion - Dominique Moisi

Kind of in the same category as "Revenge of Geography".  Too many gross generalizations, stereotypes and platitudes at the base of his discussions.  Once you wince at these, the whole development of ideas seems to go nowhere.  He may think he is writing from a fairly objective point of view but his western biases in relation to progress, the desirable future, the point of society etc. are very apparent as the assumed givens at the base of his points.
I read the beginning and the chapter on Islam and Arabs.  He is right about humiliation and its role in this situation, but he could have said what he has to say is far fewer pages - it would have been clearer and more to the point.

Some references though:

Edward Said

The Reluctant Fundamentalist - Mohsin Hamid (novel - Pakistan)

Samir Kassir - Being Arab (assassinated lebanese newspaper columnist)

The Revenge of Geography - Robert Kaplan

A very disappointing book. Endless pages discussing the ideas of authors from the period of the Great Game in Central Asia, and whose relevance is somewhat doubtful these days.
Gross over generalizations and platitudes on countries and international relations without any attempt to justify or support the ideas.  Too much of the "as everyone knows" kind of thing, to which you think "Oh really?"

I gave up when his vague generalizations began to contradict each other to the point where you felt he was saying nothing.

He needs a better editor...

Barbarians to Angels - Peter S. Wells

Subtitle:  The Dark Ages Reconsidered

The subtitle says it all.  A new perpective on what is known as the Dark Ages which, as the author points out, can only be called "dark" if you take the Roman Empire as the peak of "light".
An interesting overview of some of the factors at work which contributed to creating the art and architecture styles that eventually become the Carolingian culture.
He uses archaeological evidence to back up the assertion that there was no great abandonment of cities and towns or of long distance trade.  Instead what you have with the fall of the Roman Empire is the disappearance, or maybe the transformation or melding, of the culture of the elite with the culture of the local inhabitants.  The book inadvertently draws attention to the fact that the Roman Empire was essentially a colonial enterprise.

The one thing I find missing in the book, particularly in the discussion of the development of the new animal motif, semiabstract style of art, is the link to the Steppe cultures that were moving into Europe at that time.  If you look at the art reproductions in the book you can't help but think of the earlier Scythian jewelry from the Black Sea step area.