From Ervand Abrahamian, a leading historian on the Middle East, comes a lucid account of the CIA's 1953 coup in Iran and how it paved the way to today's diplomatic gridlock. The Coup is the first trade book to put the 1953 coup in context, filling a gap in the understanding of Iran's history. Abrahamian relies on little-known archival information to position the coup and its aftermath in a new light, challenging conventional interpretations of the event and positioning it in the context of oil interests rather than the Cold War. A timely and eye-opening book.