Lawrence of the Arabs by Rober Graves
 
Beginning his life-long affair with the Middle East, T.E. Lawrence - Lawrence of Arabia - made his first journey to the region, a four-month walking tour of Syria studying the Crusaders' castles, while still a student at Oxford. He later returned to the area as an archaeologist and at the outbreak of World War I was attached to British army intelligence in Egypt. In 1916 he set out on his greatest adventure. With no backing, Lawrence joined Arab forces facing almost insurmountable odds in a rebellion against Turkish domination. His brilliance as a desert war strategist made him a hero among the Arabs, a legendary figure throughout the world, and earned him the moniker Lawrence of Arabia.