Described by the author as simply a work of love Mirror to Damascus" provides an enthralling & fascinating history of Damascus from the Amorites of the Bible to the revolution of 1966 as well a being a charming & witty personal record of a city well-loved. In explaining how modern Damascus is rooted in immemoriable layers of culture & tradition Colin Thubron explores the historical artistic social & religious inheritance of the Damascenes in an amusing & perceptive manner whilst interspersing the narrative with innumerable anecdotes about travellers of bygone days. " Mirror to Damascus" is a unique portrait of a city now obscured by recent upheavals by one of the most indefatigable & popular of travel writers."