[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-detail-37771-en":3,"doc-seo-37771-105":29,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":89},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",{"doc_id":7,"user_id":8,"nickname":9,"user_avatar":10,"doc_module":4,"category_id":11,"category_name":12,"doc_title":13,"doc_description":14,"doc_content":15,"file_id":16,"file_url":17,"file_type":18,"file_size":19,"view_count":11,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":20,"is_downloadable":20,"audit_status":20,"page_count":21,"language":22,"language_code":23,"site_id":24,"html_lang":23,"table_of_contents":25,"faqs":26,"seo_title":13,"seo_description":14,"update_tm":27,"read_time":28},37771,7971461740909,"Levi","https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_155a257f0dc6eb9ab79c44ca47cae57d",2,"Literature","Lion of Jordan: The Life of King Hussein in War and Peace","A scholarly book brief reviews Avi Shlaim’s biography, Lion of Jordan: The Life of King Hussein in War and Peace, focusing on contested interpretations of Hussein’s secret contacts with Israeli leaders. It contrasts “New Historians”’ interest in the Arab narrative with critics’ warnings about swapping one set of assumptions for another. The review argues that the contacts did not significantly harm the Arab cause, while Hussein’s negotiations helped preserve his dynasty, and assesses claims about failed peacemaking.","This article was downloaded by: [FU Berlin]  \nOn: 22 October 2014, At: 05:06  \nPublisher: Routledge  \nInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK  \nAmerican Foreign Policy Interests: The Journal of the National Committee on American Foreign Policy  \nPublication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information:  \n[http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/uafp20](http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/uafp20)  \nLion of Jordan: The Life of King Hussein in War and Peace by Avi Shlaim  \nAmir Taheri Senior Fellow aa NCAFP Project on the Middle East , Published online: 14 Jun 2008.  \nTo cite this article: Amir Taheri Senior Fellow (2008) Lion of Jordan: The Life of King Hussein in War and Peace by Avi Shlaim, American Foreign Policy Interests: The Journal of the National Committee on American Foreign Policy, 30:3, 181-183  \nTo link to this article: [http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10803920802171212](http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10803920802171212)  \nPLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE  \nTaylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform . However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis . The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information . Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content.  \nThis article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes . Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any  \nform to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at [http://](http://)[ ](http://)[www.tandfonline.com/page/term](www.tandfonline.com/page/term)s-and-conditions  \nDownloaded by [FU Berlin] at 05:06 22 October 2014  \nAmerican Foreign Policy Interests, 30: 181–187, 2008 Copyright \\# 2008 NCAFP  \nISSN: 1080-3920 print  \nDOI: 10.1080/10803920802171212  \nBook Brief  \nLion of Jordan: The Life of King Hussein in War and Peace  \nby Avi Shlaim  \nLondon: Allen Lane (2007),  \n£30, 698 pages  \nJust as there is more than one way to skin a cat, telling the story of the men who have acted out the Middle Eastern tragedy of the past six decades comes in different versions. The latest of these is presented by the so-called New Historians, a group of Israeli scholars eager to understand the Arab narrative. This new biography of the late King Hussein of Jordan is an interesting specimen.  \nFor more than two decades, rumors circulated in the Middle East about secret contacts between Hussein and successive Israeli leaders. Enemies of the late king exaggerated the importance of the contacts and castigated the Jordanian leader for his supposed‘‘betrayal’’of the Arab cause, whatever its meaning at any given time. Hussein’s friends, on the other hand, talked up the secret contacts as proof that the king was a ‘‘man of peace’’ under virtually all circumstances. In this wellresearched book, Avi Shlaim shows that neither view quite reflected reality. The secret contacts did not do any meaningful harm to the ‘‘Arab cause’’ if only because it was never properly spelled out. Moreover, Hussein’s negotiations with Israeli leaders did not advance the cause of peace by an inch,  \nalthough they did help him to preserve his dynasty’s hold on Jordan.  \nThis is a he","cbCais9SKLloaBlL","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCais9SKLloaBlL","pdf",86970,1,4,"English","en",105,"# Book Brief\n## Context and framing of the biography\n## Secret contacts and their consequences\n## Peacemaking attempts and reasons for failure\n## Hussein’s reputation across Arab political factions\n## Method, thesis, and critique of historical narratives","[{\"question\":\"What is the core dispute addressed in the review about King Hussein’s secret contacts with Israeli leaders?\",\"answer\":\"The review contrasts views that exaggerate Hussein’s “betrayal” versus views that treat secret contacts as proof of his commitment to peace. It argues neither portrayal fully matches reality.\"},{\"question\":\"According to the review, what did Hussein’s negotiations with Israeli leaders accomplish?\",\"answer\":\"They did not meaningfully advance the cause of peace, but they helped Hussein preserve his dynasty’s hold on Jordan.\"},{\"question\":\"Why does the review question the New Historians’ approach?\",\"answer\":\"It notes the risk of replacing one set of preconceived ideas with another, since history told from the Arab narrative is not necessarily closer to truth than the Israeli narrative.\"}]",1783055018,6,{"code":4,"msg":30,"data":31},"ok",{"site_id":24,"language":23,"slug":32,"title":13,"keywords":33,"description":14,"schema_data":34,"social_meta":84,"head_meta":86,"extra_data":88,"updated_unix":27},"lion-of-jordan-the-life-of-king-hussein-in-war-and-peace-37771","",{"@graph":35,"@context":83},[36,51,66],{"@type":37,"itemListElement":38},"BreadcrumbList",[39,43,46,49],{"item":40,"name":41,"@type":42,"position":20},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":44,"name":45,"@type":42,"position":11},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",{"item":47,"name":12,"@type":42,"position":48},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/literature/",3,{"item":50,"name":13,"@type":42,"position":21},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/lion-of-jordan-the-life-of-king-hussein-in-war-and-peace-37771/37771/",{"url":50,"name":13,"@type":52,"author":53,"headline":13,"publisher":55,"fileFormat":58,"inLanguage":23,"description":14,"dateModified":59,"datePublished":60,"encodingFormat":58,"isAccessibleForFree":61,"interactionStatistic":62},"DigitalDocument",{"name":9,"@type":54},"Person",{"url":40,"name":56,"@type":57},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-07-09","2026-07-03",true,{"@type":63,"interactionType":64,"userInteractionCount":11},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":65},"ViewAction",{"@type":67,"mainEntity":68},"FAQPage",[69,75,79],{"name":70,"@type":71,"acceptedAnswer":72},"What is the core dispute addressed in the review about King Hussein’s secret contacts with Israeli leaders?","Question",{"text":73,"@type":74},"The review contrasts views that exaggerate Hussein’s “betrayal” versus views that treat secret contacts as proof of his commitment to peace. It argues neither portrayal fully matches reality.","Answer",{"name":76,"@type":71,"acceptedAnswer":77},"According to the review, what did Hussein’s negotiations with Israeli leaders accomplish?",{"text":78,"@type":74},"They did not meaningfully advance the cause of peace, but they helped Hussein preserve his dynasty’s hold on Jordan.",{"name":80,"@type":71,"acceptedAnswer":81},"Why does the review question the New Historians’ approach?",{"text":82,"@type":74},"It notes the risk of replacing one set of preconceived ideas with another, since history told from the Arab narrative is not necessarily closer to truth than the Israeli narrative.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":50,"og:type":85,"og:title":13,"og:site_name":56,"og:description":14},"article",{"robots":87,"canonical":50},"index,follow",{"doc_id":7,"site_id":24},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":90},[91,95,98,102,107,111,116,121,126,129,133],{"id":20,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":92,"show_sort_weight":93,"slug":94},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":11,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":12,"show_sort_weight":96,"slug":97},80,"literature",{"id":21,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":99,"show_sort_weight":100,"slug":101},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":103,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":104,"show_sort_weight":105,"slug":106},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":28,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":108,"show_sort_weight":109,"slug":110},"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":112,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":113,"show_sort_weight":114,"slug":115},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":117,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":118,"show_sort_weight":119,"slug":120},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":122,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":123,"show_sort_weight":124,"slug":125},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":124,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":127,"show_sort_weight":124,"slug":128},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":130,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":131,"show_sort_weight":130,"slug":132},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":134,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":135,"show_sort_weight":103,"slug":136},19,"General","general"]