I don't do much reading books for fun so my list is pretty limited to the books that we read for school:

1. Things fall apart - the white settlers try to institute their ways over the africans and live with them. I thought that this book was pretty bad.

2. Kite Runner - In this book the main characters live through the taliban taking over Afghanistan before moving to the US. I thought that this was a fabulous book. 

List O' Books

Here is my list of books that I have read by middle eastern or african writers.  It isn't very extensive.

1.  Things Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe - This wasn't my favorite book, but it was pretty good.  That is all I have to say about that.

2.  The Kite Runner By Khaled Hosseini - This was one of my favorite books because it at least seemed to be a very genuine story of what happens to people in the middle east, particularly Afganistan.

3.  A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier By Ishmael Beah - I read this book for summer reading coming into freshman year.  I liked the fact that they were for the most part true stories, and for this reason it gave you a very good insight into the lives of boy soldiers in africa.

Africa and the Middle East in popular culture.

I can remember having seen quite a few pieces of literature written by African and Middle Eastern creators.

Naturally, the most easily recalled are the most recent.

First, there is African author Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart (which we, as sophomores, all know and love dearly.) It chronicles the life of a superstar wrestler in an African village and how it falls apart after the arrival of the Christian missionaries. It is quite enlightening a read, and relatively easy to process, although by no means a legendary piece of literature (It is more well known among circles of those who study social interactions, cultures, and psychology, as opposed to literature.)

Then, there is the novel The Kite Runner, which I am sure most (if not all) of my sophomore comrades will remember as well. Because this was a true story, it cannot really be criticized as fiction literature, but is well written and engaging.

It is disappointing that I have so few titles to bring to the table (the metaphorical table of the internet- ooh, deep.), but I have not had much time to branch out my reading due to schoolwork.
Alas, school- alas.

The Middle East's Economy: Oil

Since I am one of the last to post on this topic I decided to choose a semi-extraneous country: Oman. Before reading this textbook I had never even heard of Oman so I thought it would be interesting to research. First off, I notice it's location is favorable because it is on the ocean which makes it easier to trade. Also the trip to India, Pakistan, and Iran is not far by boat which is a definite plus. One thing that I notice right off the bat is that it is noticeably smaller compared to it's neighbor Qatar. This could factor into it's local political power and respect. Now to analyze some statistics. Like I thought Oman has always thrived because of it's location and it's easiness with trade. Another thing I learned was that it has always had strong ties to England. It's climate is dry and humid and it's countryside contains desert. Oman has a small population with a little more than 3 million, however it's population growth rate is around 3%. Another thing I learned was that Oman gained it's independence in 1650 from Portugal which is a lot earlier than the majority of the African colonies. To explain it's economy CIA-The World Factbook explains, "Oman is a middle-income economy that is heavily dependent on dwindling oil resources, but sustained high oil prices in recent years have helped build Oman's budget and trade surpluses and foreign reserves. As a result of its dwindling oil resources, Oman is actively pursuing a development plan that focuses on diversification, industrialization, and privatization, with the objective of reducing the oil sector's contribution to GDP to 9% by 2020." To conclude, it looks to me that the country of Oman fits the mold of the majority of Middle Eastern countries: it's economy thrives off of oil.

Like every sophomore, I have read Things Fall Apart, the story of white settlers disrupting the life of an African man. Also, I have read The Kite Runner, the story of two best friends in Afghanistan. Besides that, I sadly have not seen or read much about 20th or 21st C African or MENA life.

Areas of Corruption

Building on to what Justin and Kyle said, I believe that the low populations in these oil-rich regions creates a huge gap between the rich and poor. Kyle mentioned that the heads of oil companies are in a state of huge monopoly because of this great location. I agree with this, but from a different perspective the monopoly from the oil industry seems to also give the oil company owners much power over the rest of the population.  Justin brought up the idea of having a denser population in these regions to solve the problem.  This is an interesting thought, however, I was thinking that having more regulations over the oil industries would promote a more fair market.  Consequently, this would give more rights and higher to the workers, lessening the gap between the rich and poor.  Often times, these huge industries use their money to have much more influence over the law. Regulating these companies would rid corruption, allowing the poorer, vast majority of the population to have an increased standard of living.

Nigeria's Ongoing Issues

Nigeria is one of the wealthiest and largest country in Africa.  Unfortunately, like many places in Africa, it is still suffering from many problems.  For example on WHO/AFRO it says the adult literacy rate is only 11.1%.  This is drastically different than the world we live in, where it is hard to find someone illiterate.   Also the life expectancy is 45 years.  This is relatively good for Africa, but compared to us, only half our lifetime.  Although these problems are similar to those of other African countries, the real problem seems to be derived from the turmoil and divides between the country.  The textbook insinuates about the oil reserves, but does not directly state that Nigeria is under somewhat of an indirect rule.  It seems to be tied down politically due to foreign oil interests.  Though the government was able to profit greatly from the oil industry, much of its population is neglected and suffering.  The government was also having trouble with internal corruption as it "ruthlessly suppressed all opposition."  Not only does Nigeria have political unrest, but it also has deep religious divides rooted hundreds of years back.  The Muslim verses Christian conflict is still ongoing today.  Not only is it anguished by the present day conflict, but it also has historical divides fueling it.  As Muslim cattle herders moved to Nigeria, trying to get away from the dry Sahara grasslands, they ran into conflicts over land with the preexistent Christian farmers.  

It is ironic that one of the wealthiest countries in Africa could have such alarming statistics.  Although it seems that the wealth would mitigate the problems, it is the deep divides that torment Nigeria, throwing it off balance.

Things Fall Apart

Like the majority of our class I have read Things Fall Apart By Chinua Achebe. Here is a review of the book.

Reliance On Oil

If you take a look at the map in the textbook, it's really easy to tell where the powerful and rich places for oil are. As Sean pointed out, they tend to be near the water.  The thing that I got from this map and seeing it displayed the way, was that it reminded me how much the Middle East has control over the oil part of our economy. It's really true that our nation is way to dependent on foreign oil, and so as a result, places with all the oil, like the Middle East, are able to control this part of our economy by providing us with oil. I think that this information, and especially this map, point out how important location is for resources, and how it's extremely different all around the world. As a result, it requires nations from all over the place to rely on natural resources that the Middle East can provide for a ton of people.

African Literature

As I think a lot of people have said and will say, I read Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe, which is a novel giving insight to the effects of colonialism on their native tribe.

African Literature and Movies

The only book by an African author that I have read is Things Fall Apart. This book tells the story of a man and his village that he greatly cares for. It tells of many Igbo rituals and beliefs and how these beliefs changed with the coming of white settlers hoping to spread Christianity. I personally did not like the story, and the only reason I can give for that is that Okonkwo, the main character, just bothered me because he was very one-dimensional and set in his ways. But, although the book is not my favorite, it is still quite historically accurate, and you can learn a lot of about African, or at least Igbo, culture from this book.
The only movie I have seen is the one we saw in class, The Battle of Algiers.

Hmmm........

I think the only novel I have ever read by an African Author is Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe.

As for other media, the Battle of Algiers is about it.

Things Fall Apart

Just Things Fall Apart... by Chinua Achebe

African Films and Short Stories

1. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

Though I can't remember any other books or movies focusing on post colonial africa, Things Fall Apart was centralized around the time that the white men were invading various clans. Thus, it is perfect for demonstrating the change that the Africans underwent in terms of culture and religion and how Christianity came over. Also, it showed the ways in which Christians went about converting people from the Igbo clan of Umuofia.

Borders

The map of major oil-producing areas easily tells us why some families are hording wealth while the vast majority have nothing. I would like to take a moment to look at the borders of the different countries. From the topographic map, it is clear that most of these borders were not drawn based on land marks, but based on roughly drawn lines most likely written in around the Middle Easts' independence. It is also pertinent to notice that these rough borders fall near or on top of oil rich areas. This must have some significance because conflict could easily erupt around who has jurisdiction over what section of the oil preserves. No one wants to share their chance at the "good life."

Storytelling

African and Middle Eastern books & films: 

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe - book 

Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini - book and movie

Aladdin-  movie

Last King of Scotland - movie

Blood Diamond - movie

Exodus  - movie

Taking Advantage

As mentioned many times before, most of the oil in the Middle East is near bodies of water and rural areas. Many have explained the cause of this being that oil is in low elevations (meaning near water levels and flat areas) due to gravity (as Kevin mentioned). Yet many seem to forget that these are not just happenings that everybody ignores, rather they are things that people use toward their advantage.

Each of these facts brings its own benefit to the “owners” of the oil. Being in flat lands is a great advantage because it allows for the oil to be extracted and transported with greater ease. Since it is in rural areas it also allows for easier transportation and it is simply easier to maintain oil reservoirs in these unpopulated areas. Yet what really helps these people be successful in their production of oil is the water. Through these bodies of water the oil capable be transported to all parts of the world. Being so close to the water is a big benefit. These geographical happenings are very interesting, but what is more interesting to me is how easy and fast the people were able to use them to their advantage.

I found it very interesting that areas with these benefits had a lot more conflicts than areas without these benefits. We could assume that oil is a magnet for conflict. Probably due to the fact that is an natural resource in high demand and many people want the areas with so many profits.

Oil in the Middle East

When we think of oil, we not only think of what it powers, but more important, where it comes from. The middle east has a vast variety of economy and wealth, but the wealth they have comes from the oil business. While the map in the textbook is political and the one online is geographical, they both display the same countries. Most of the major oil-producing areas are on the water, with the exception of Iraq. Location on the water has always been a prime situation since early colonies, for there is a higher source of trade. The oil-producing companies in the middle east have formed relationships with the United States and countries all around the world based on their possession of this crucial resource. As sean noted, it easier to drill oil on low land areas. But their success is due to the accesability of trading with foreign areas. Also, Tim has mentioned that the middle east has nothing without oil. That's true, the middle east is defined by their access to oil and has almost no wealth without it. Countries must work to maintain a relationship with them in order to ensure a steady source of oil. 

Media by African or Middle Eastern

I have read
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

Also, I read The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
It is a story of a young boy Amir growing up in Afghanistan and his friendship with a boy named Hassan.

Also, if it counts, We watched part of the movie in class about the rebellion in Algeria by the FLN, The Battle Of Algiers