Tribes with Flags is one the the most compelling and detailed books I have read about the modern Middle East. In classic travel book fashion, author Charles Glass knows everyone and goes everywhere -- or at least seems to. Along the way, he imparts snippets of history and untangles the complex web of family and religious allliances -- and betrayals -- that have turned modern Lebanon into a battleground. Glass's kidnapping by Hizbullah punctuates this memoir with an exciting conclusion, but the real reason to read the book is the journey beforehand.
