Ike's Gamble: America's Rise to Dominance in the Middle East

"This book is subversively revisionist history with sharp relevance to the present. . . . [A] deeply researched, tightly argued and accessibly concise book. . . . [Doran ] writes with the authority of a scholar and the familiarity of a senior policy adviser."
--David Frum "The New York Times Book Review "

"This is a story that has been told many times, but seldom with the depth and stylistic elegance of Ike's Gamble. Michael Doran does not just challenge the prevailing historiography, he turns it on its head."--Ray Takeyh "The Weekly Standard "

"Deeply researched, well-written and powerfully persuasive, this book revises everything we've come to accept about America's role in the Middle East in the 1950s. This highly readable and remarkably forthright book explains how America changed from being a mere 'honest broker' in Middle Eastern affairs to being a committed player."--Professor Andrew Roberts, Lehrman Institute Distinguished Fellow, New-York Historical Society

"Riveting, original, and deeply relevant. . . . This is a history of the formative Cold War years that continue to shape current conflicts in Iraq, Syria, and other parts of the region. Anyone interested in the contemporary Middle East and U.S. foreign policy should read this book."--Jeremi Suri, Author of Liberty's Surest Guardian: American Nation-Building from the Founders to Obama

"Mr. Doran illuminates a narrative with which very few non-specialists will be familiar. . . . A thoroughly researched, closely argued work of traditional diplomatic history."--James Traub "Wall Street Journal "

"The failure of the British-French invasion of Egypt in 1956 was one of the seminal events of the second half of the twentieth century: it marked the end of Britain's and France's aspirations to world leadership. America's involvement is brilliantly described in Ike's Gamble, a thoughtful and articulate account of the evolution of America's role in that fateful period."--Henry A. Kissinger

"[Doran] fits the Suez crisis into a broader argument about American policy in the Middle East during the Eisenhower administration. . . . Ike's Gamble [is] a timely intervention into current debates. Obama won't read it, but Hillary Clinton should."--Adam Kirsch "Tablet "

"Ike's Gamble is a brilliant and fascinating story, compellingly told, of American politics, government, and foreign policy. Doran paints a fascinating portrait of how American foreign policy is designed, how mistakes are made, and how Eisenhower came to understand the errors that had strengthened America's enemies."--Elliott Abrams, Senior Fellow for Middle Eastern Studies, Council on Foreign Relations

"With this highly original and persuasive new book, Mike Doran offers a fresh interpretation of Eisenhower's Middle East policy. Doran also sheds new light on the complexities of the Middle East and American policy challenges there today. This is a compelling history by an accomplished scholar."--William Inboden, Executive Director and William Powers, Jr. Chair, theClements Center for National Security at UT-Austin

"Doran is so good at bringing Eisenhower and his challenges to life that one can't avoid making comparisons with the tough choices confronting the United States today. I can't think of another book that so thoroughly challenged my assumptions about America's role in the Middle East."
--Will McCants, author of The Isis Apocalypse and Director, Project on U.S. Relations with the Islamic World at The Brookings Institution