Into the Hands of the Soldiers
Freedom and Chaos in Egypt and the Middle East
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Into the Hands of the Soldiers
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Narrated by:
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David D. Kirkpatrick
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Written by:
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David D. Kirkpatrick
About this listen
One of The Economist's Books of the Year
David D. Kirkpatrick, a correspondent for The New York Times, was banned from Egypt for writing this book: the definitive account of the turn back toward authoritarianism in Cairo and across the Middle East.
Egypt has long set the paradigm for Arab autocracy. It is the keeper of the peace with Israel and the cornerstone of the American-backed regional order. So when Egyptians rose up to demand democracy in 2011, their 30 months of freedom convulsed the whole region. Now a new strongman, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, is building a dictatorship so severe some call it totalitarian. The economy sputters, an insurgency simmers, Christians suffer, and the Israeli military has been forced to intervene. But some in Washington - including President Trump - applaud Sisi as a crucial ally.
Kirkpatrick lived with his family in Cairo through the revolution, the coup and the bloodshed that followed. Then he returned to Washington to uncover the American role in the tragedy. His heartbreaking story is essential to understanding the Middle East today.
©2018 David D. Kirkpatrick (P)2018 Penguin AudioWhat the critics say
"This street-level account of the Egyptian revolution and its aftermath combines memoir, reportage, and analysis.... Kirkpatrick’s most valuable insights come from interviews given, years later, by Obama Administration officials." (The New Yorker)
"Kirkpatrick describes these tumultuous times in compelling detail. The author is honest about how hard it was to interpret events, grasp the motives of people such as Sisi and Morsi and predict the direction in which Egypt was heading.... But Kirkpatrick, who dodged bullets and official harassment, deciphered the mystery." (The Economist)
"What [Kirkpatrick] has written is a tragedy, not only in the sense of a dreadful mishap, but in the Greek sense of a terrible fate that the hero has provoked yet cannot or will not see - though we in the audience can. It's an account that fills us with terror and pity." (The Wall Street Journal)