America's Kingdom: Mythmaking on the Saudi Oil Frontier (Stanford Studies in Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies and Cultures (Paperback))

"America's Kingdom" by Robert Vitalis is a deeply fascinating history of the U.S. in Saudi Arabia in the mid 20th century. Mr. Vitalis, who is an Associate Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, seeks to correct the mythmaking that has obscured the real story for far too long, dedicating many years of research to this project. The result is an exacting piece of scholarship that produces remarkable insight into the forces that have shaped U.S. relations with the Middle East.The book is divided into two parts. The first section focuses on the labor practices of ARAMCO in Saudi Arabia. Mr. Vitalis astutely compares and contrasts the industrial practices of other U.S.-based extractive industries to find that ARAMCO simply imposed upon its Saudi clients what had already been learned elsewhere: namely, to divide and conquer the local labor force; control the political process; and extract maximum profits. In this particular case, of course, Mr. Vitalis details how ARAMCO's efforts were fully supported by a U.S. government intent on pursuing its geopolitical ambitions on the world stage, in which the control of oil played no small part.The second part tells the story of worker struggle, politics and power. Debunking the myths that had been carefully constructed by corporate public relations professionals and sympathetic government officials, Mr. Vitalis decisively shows how worker's rights were gained by popular struggle and not from enlightened corporate policies. Through Mr. Vitalis' engrossing narrative, we see how American interests came to ally itself ever more closely with the Kingdom as a means to ensuring a steady flow of oil and projecting American power into the region.Throughout the text, the reader is introduced to a cast of sometimes colorful characters ranging from labor agitators, royalists, secret CIA operatives, Soviet double agents and more. Mr. Vitalis excels at uncovering obscure source documents that help him weave these players into the narrative and bring history to life. While there is no doubt that the overall thrust of the book is towards a high degree of historical accuracy, profound insight and professionalism, the character profiles and world-shaping events that are narrated by Mr. Vitalis result in a suprisingly readable and informative account.I highly recommend this exceptional book to educated readers who have a keen interest in 20th century American and Middle Eastern history.

In all public debates about Middle Eastern politics, what is often left out in the vitriol and pontificating is the strong economic, military and political alliance between the United States and Saudi Arabia. A relationship born towards the end of the Great Depression, this alliance evolved through the tumult and convulsions of the 20th century, shaping how the US controlled political evolution in countries like Iraq, Egypt, Iran and the Gulf, unwittingly (or wittingly) abetting the Saudis in how they use the prestige of this relationship to push the region and the wider Muslim world closer to its own ideological conception, tearing apart these societies in the process. This may be the key reason for the political instability and social decay that is destroying the Muslim world today, be it Islamist violence in Pakistan and Bangladesh, the plague of Boko Haram in Nigeria, the sway of Islamists in the Maghreb, the increasing gap between the traditional masses and a power hungry secular elite in Egypt and the ISIS menace that is destroying Iraq and Levant, not to mention spitting out radicals to Europe. Rather than wailing again about "Why do they hate us", read this book and understand how one of our oldest alliances in the region has held this region back for so long, along with its people. An alliance of oil and blood.

This book has a labor-history focus that transcends traditional breaks between diplo and social history. The title does not capture the book's incredible scope and synthesis. WOW! People should, IMO, get this book now.WOW! Hard to imagine a book withe more disparate intersections of key themes in 20th century US AND ALSO international history! The only book I could compare it to is the incredible Thy Will Be Done: Nelson Rockefeller, Evangelism, and the Conquest of the Amazon in the Age of Oil, a title which ALSO completely fails to capture the essence of its intersections. That and of course, the best book yet written on the history of the US National Security State, JFK and the Unspeakable: Why He Died and Why It Matters, a book that Charlie Rose censored from PBS when RFK Jr. held it up in Dallas, January 11, 2013.Among other things this book helps you understands key buried Big Inch and Little Inch moments that run through the history of the 20th century Democratic Party. There is too much money to be made in our not seeing this longer term view, so this book is necessary.

The history and ideas laid out in the book are not simple, nor are they simply presented. The author makes a compelling case for completely re-evaluating the commonly understood relationship between America and Saudi Arabia, and in doing so challenges commonly held beliefs for what makes America "great". I am struck by how relevant this book is to everything going on in the United States - and the rest of the world - today.

This incredibly well read book intertwines the history of ARAMCO and American foreign policy within the Middle East. Vitalis' text informs without using poli sci specific jargon and is as entertaining as a Le Carre novel. Many have stated that this book debunks the relationship between Saudi Arabia and the US. However, I believe in reading theoretical texts critically. Despite some holes in his argument this text is enjoyable and informing. A must read for anyone interested in the Middle East, us foreign policy and resource management.EnjoySJ

If you're looking for a discussion of the nature of the U.S.-Saudi political relationship, I would recommend  Inside The Mirage: America's Fragile Partnership with Saudi Arabia . This book, "America's Kingdom," is really just focuses on the American influence on Aramco, and Aramco's influence on Washington.There's another, far less excellent history of Aramco out there, from several years ago, the error-filled  Oil, God, and Gold: The Story of Aramco and the Saudi Kings .