Book Review: Florence of Arabia, by Christopher Buckley (2004)

The Australian cover of Florence of Arabia, by Christopher Buckley, 2004. 

Christopher Buckley’s 2004 novel Florence of Arabia is a satire of the Middle East. I know, perhaps not the most likely subject for a satirical novel published in the immediate wake of 9/11 and the United States’ invasion of Iraq. But Buckley makes it work.  

The titular character is Florence Farfaletti, a State Department official who wants to bring women’s rights to the Middle East. Easier said than done. Especially when countries like Wasabia, which has a dismal record on women’s rights, is a close ally of the United States, due to the fact that Wasabia is swimming in oil. Of course, Buckley is a satirist, so there’s no way a country like Wasabia could actually exist. Wink wink, nudge nudge.  

Florence’s memo about her plan to bring women’s rights to the Middle East puts her on the radar of a mysterious government official who finances her covert operation. Florence and her team head to Matar, a more liberal emirate. Matar borders Wasabia, and thanks to Winston Churchill, Matar has ocean access while Wasabia does not.  

Florence of Arabia is a satire, but it still exists in the real world. Some awful things happen in the course of the novel, which feels true to what would actually happen if someone tried to bring women’s rights to the Middle East.  

One of my favorite lines in the novel was from Bobby Thibodeaux, a CIA operative. Speaking of the Middle East, he says to Florence “Don’t you understand that since the dawn of time, startin’ with the Garden of Eden, nothing has ever gone right here?” (p.113) 

Buckley also mocks the haplessness of United States foreign policy. As a crisis unfolds, he writes of the U.S. politicians: “There were those who urged caution, and those who urged that now was a time not for caution but for boldness. Then there were those who urged a middle course of cautious boldness.” (p.158) 

In Florence of Arabia, Christopher Buckley gives us an interesting heroine who is easy to root for, more than a dash of action and intrigue, and enough ideas to power this excellent novel, which turns twenty years old in 2024 but still provides much food for thought.