T. E. Lawrence's autobiographical tale, the basis for the film Lawrence of Arabia, offers a firsthand account of the Arab Revolt against the Turks. Lawrence was already a living legend by the time of this book's initial publication, and his colorful, poetic memoir paints a fascinating portrait of the Middle East during World War I. Faced with a deadlock on the Western front, the British pursued the opening of an Eastern front by persuading the Arabs to attack the Ottoman Empire. Lawrence's understanding of Arab culture and his skills as a tactician made him the ideal liaison. His action-packed accounts of desert campaigns and acute observations of people, places, and events form a vivid historical record that combines the power of a heroic epic with the intimacy of an autobiography.
