“At the heart of McAlister’s analysis is a brilliant dissection of American ‘interest’ in the Middle East…. [The book] finally suggests nothing less than a wholesale revision of U.S. history between…the 1950s and the 1990s.” – American Quarterly
“It is one of the achievements of McAlister’s subtle and complex book that her analysis allows one to situate public perceptions…and the responses of the U.S.Government within a coherent and persuasive framework. [An] excellent book.” –Times Literary Supplement
“Epic Encounters is a vitally important book because it warns against easy explanations of US foreign policy.” – Diplomatic History
“Indeed epic, providing a wide-ranging and sophisticated analysis of the ‘cultural logic’ behind America’s expansionist foreign policy.” – Journal of American History
“An excellent study of the influences and uses of American perceptions of the Middle East.” – Middle East Journal
“Subtle, skillful, and enormously informative.” – Journal of American Studies
“The fact that the arguments in Epic Encounters are far-reaching does not take away from their brilliance: McAlister’s methods is immensely adaptable, and the resulting histories are anything but monolithic.” – Postcolonial Studies
“Pathbreaking…Essential reading for understanding the multi-faceted role of the the Middle East in American–and world–affairs.” – American Jewish History
“A must read….McAlister clarifies the foundation of many crises.” – Palestine Solidarity Review
“An important addition to the literature on US policy in the Middle East in the post-WWII period.” – Choice
“McAlister is uniquely placed to reveal what she calls ‘the often invisible significance of the Middle East to Americans.’… [She] reconfigures American investment in the Middle East as a central element of our own national, racial, and sexual identities.” – Village Voice