{"product_id":"qatar-christine-osborne-9780992324049","title":"Old Gulf Coast Days: Qatar","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe small Arab state of Qatar on the western shore of the Persian Gulf was a slow starter in development when compared with neighbours Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia. Although the country had enjoyed good revenue from oil since the mid-seventies, its ruler was reluctant to embrace change. As recently as 1975 capital Doha, had only a single first-class hotel and one bank and people still lived in goat-hair tents in the desert hinterland. When a huge off-shore natural gas field began production in 1989 a decision was taken to replace the old emir. The rise of Qatar following the assumption of power by his son, HH Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani in 1995 was meteoric. Not only in the streets of soaring skyscraper but in desert reclamation schemes, aviation and communications, notably Al-Jazeera an international 24-hour English-language news channel. The FIFA World Cup held in 2022 introduced the tiny nation to a worldwide audience of some 5 billion people. But this book is not an appraisal of Qatar's achievements. Rather it is a look back, via a unique set of photographs, at \"Old Gulf Coast\" days.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eChristine Osborne is an Australian photojournalist and author of books on the developing world including The Gulf States and Oman examining the impact of oil on local Arab society.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Christine Osborne\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0992324041\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780992324049\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Christine Osborne Pictures\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 05\/31\/2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 52\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.19lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 6.50h x 6.50w x 0.14d","brand":"Christine Osborne","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":44063685509375,"sku":"9780992324049","price":20.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_6c71b0f0-64f3-4406-a9b0-f58069fe599b.jpg?v=1685391037","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/qatar-christine-osborne-9780992324049","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}