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Florence of Arabia (Abridged): A Novel Audiobook
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(3.01) - 1,370 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
The bestselling author who made mincemeat of political correctness in Thank You for Smoking, conspiracy theories in Little Green Men, and Presidential indiscretions No Way to Treat a First Lady now takes on the hottest topic in the entire world–Arab-American relations–in a blistering comic novel sure to offend the few it doesn’t delight. Appalled by the punishment of her rebellious friend Nazrah, youngest and most petulant wife of Prince Bawad of Wasabia, Florence Farfarletti decides to draw a line in the sand. As Deputy to the deputy assistant secretary for Near East Affairs, Florence invents a far-reaching, wide-ranging plan for female emancipation in that part of the world. The U.S. government, of course, tells her to forget it. Publicly, that is. Privately, she’s enlisted in a top-secret mission to impose equal rights for the sexes on the small emirate of Matar (pronounced “Mutter”), the “Switzerland of the Persian Gulf.” Her crack team: a CIA killer, a snappy PR man, and a brilliant but frustrated gay bureaucrat. Her weapon: TV shows. The lineup on TV Matar includes A Thousand and One Mornings, a daytime talk show that features self-defense tips to be used against boyfriends during Ramadan; an addictive soap opera featuring strangely familiar members of the Matar royal family; and a sitcom about an inept but ruthless squad of religious police, pitched as “Friends from Hell.” The result: the first deadly car bombs in the country since 1936, a fatwa against the station’s entire staff, a struggle for control of the kingdom, and, of course, interference from the French. And that’s only the beginning. A merciless dismantling of both American ineptitude and Arabic intolerance, Florence of Arabia is Christopher Buckley’s funniest and most serious novel yet, a biting satire of how U.S. good intentions can cause the Shiite to hit the fan.
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"Yet another delightful book by Buckley, this one will make you peer evermore closely at our policies in the Middle East. Read it for comic relief after reading Robert Baer's Sleeping with the Devil--which is puke-worthy in the way that only good political nonfiction can be."
— Shira (4 out of 5 stars)
Florence of Arabia Listener Reviews
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" took me several weeks to get through the first ten pages and an afternoon to finish the rest "
— Jennifer, 2/12/2014 -
" Christopher Buckley is always amusing; this one was a little less fun than usual for him, imho. "
— Ellen, 2/11/2014 -
" WHY aren't we using Florence's plan? Funny, true, tart, and sweet. "
— Melissa, 2/6/2014 -
" Very entertaining skewering of everyone. A little hard to follow the made up details, but amusing. Good read when sick on the couch. "
— Sue, 1/10/2014 -
" pretty funny, good for car travel "
— Heather, 12/30/2013 -
" went on a buckley stint. this one was fun, but not as good as supreme courtship. always smart and amusing. "
— Eve, 12/29/2013 -
" Buckley is great fun, a writer with a true sense of mischief. "
— Rebecca, 11/14/2013 -
" Good story; slightly, slightly disappointing. "
— Geoffrey, 11/5/2013 -
" my favorite Buckley of all-- instructive about the Middle East the way the Daily Show is about the news and world events.... "
— Jessica, 10/21/2013 -
" Stretches the imagination a little too much, and a little bit muddled in places. This is a possibly fair depiction of the backwardness still existing in many regions of the Middle East, but also a bit exaggerated in a lot of ways, I'm sure. "
— Cathy, 9/17/2013 -
" Excellent satire. "
— Sherry, 8/21/2013 -
" Leave it to Christopher Buckley to write a funny book about the middle east! Deliciously bad--I loved it! "
— Katy, 7/12/2013 -
" An interesting parellel to current Middle East events. "
— Celticann, 6/6/2013 -
" A good book. Loved the satire of American-Arab relations. However I found it hard to like the main character. "
— Irsyad, 3/14/2013 -
" Smart, biting satire of America's relationship with the modern Middle East. Not too heavy, but makes you think about how things really work in our government. "
— Adam, 12/23/2012 -
" This book is so fiercely funny. "
— Tami, 10/25/2011 -
" A catchy, quick read. Buckley takes on the treatment of women in fundamentalist Islamic countries with a bit of humor and even an attempt at romance. "
— Julie, 10/13/2011 -
" This is supposed to be a comedy, but it wasn't that funny. It was quite eye opening. I enjoyed it. "
— Cassandra, 9/16/2011 -
" Just too silly "
— Sandra, 9/4/2011 -
" A satirical adventure story about a minor State Department employee caught is a hilarious web of Middle Eastern sheiks and CIA buffoons. "
— Mike, 5/16/2011 -
" ???? ??? ?? ?? ???? ??????: 2 ????? ?? ??? ????????, ???? ????? ?????? ????? ??????????? ????? ????????? :D "
— ??????, 5/12/2011 -
" Can't quite make up my mind about this one. It is billed as being funny and there is some humor in it, but not all that much to my way of thinking. Maybe because I read it when there is so much unrest in the Middle East right now. I will try another of his novels and see if that helps. "
— Tom, 1/30/2011 -
" Entertaining satire of current events, more amusing than outright funny. A bit by the numbers, but the numbers exist for a reason--because they work. "
— Sarah, 11/22/2010 -
" I don't think that I could ever say anything bad about Christopher Buckley. Anyone that can take women's rights in the middle east, public executions, and secret government organizations and make it funny is definately a keeper. "
— Ebony, 9/23/2010 -
" I loved the book !!Though it was a bit offensive, i thought it was entertaining yet it shed light on serious issues !!! "
— Norah, 9/11/2010 -
" So far typical Buckley - very funny. Then got very interesting while ending with some of the irony missing. Not his best work for me. "
— Lynn, 6/28/2010 -
" recommended by a friend. Funny and sarcastic...some value in its cultural theme...generally just a comical read "
— Gregory, 5/14/2010
About Christopher Buckley
Christopher Buckley is a novelist, essayist, humorist, critic, magazine editor, and memoirist. His books include Thank You for Smoking, The Judge Hunter, Make Russia Great Again, and The Relic Master. He worked as a merchant seaman and White House speechwriter. He has written for many newspapers and magazines and has lectured in over seventy cities around the world. He was awarded the Thurber Prize for American Humor and the Washington Irving Medal for Literary Excellence.