“Lebanon through writer’s eyes”, edited by T.J.Gorton and A.Feghali Gorton (2009), is a collection of extracts from people who have written about Lebanon, or the area that now covers the Lebanese state, since antiquity, covering Greeks, Crusaders, and travelers from the Middle Ages onward Unfortunately, they have been selecting quantity over quality: many of the extracts are too brief to be interesting, whilst at the same time it is doubtful whether they would ever become interesting. Many writers don’t get further than observing the rich vegetation, especially the fruit trees, and the several attractive and strategically located port cities. Many, from early on, also observe the multitude of ethnic groups and their often conflicting interests – nothing new here. Overall, an admirable attempt, but for most of it not a very interesting read, although one can expect exceptions in such an anthology.

One is the account of Charles Kinglake, from Eothian (1834), which is very funny at times, and certainly warrants further reading. Another is Mark Twain’s excerpt from Innocents Abroad (1869), which displays a typical American arrogance combined with total naivety – not warranting further reading as far as I am concerned.