LDS Books: The White Bedouin

When Jake Sorensen takes a summer internship at a magazine in Arabia, he has no idea what he will find. In pursuit of his first big story, he determines to uncover the truth behind the rumors of the mysterious White Bedouin, a nomad who roams the hostile deserts of Saudi Arabia's Empty Quarter - a land that few dare enter. Buried in dusty corporate cases, the files Jake uncovers contain information about an oil pioneer named Stephen Markham. The White Bedouin chronicles the stories of these two men whose tales are mysteriously connected but whose lives are worlds apart.

Follow Jake as he searches for answers about the elusive White Bedouin, winding the clock back fifty years to trail Stephen Markham on a quest for oil that ultimately reveals layers of meaning long hidden in the sands of Arabia. Alone in the desert, Stephen finds a greater understanding of its people, as well as a life-changing - and forbidden - love, but among these unexpected discoveries is something much more sinister than anything he can imagine. Just as Jake starts to find answers, the trail turns cold, and he is left with more questions than he began with: Did Stephen forsake Arabia and return to his life in America, his religion, and his fiancée? Or did he disappear forever into the desert sands?

In the first book of its kind, biblical scholar George Potter mixes firsthand knowledge of Middle Eastern culture and scripture with a carefully woven story of breathtaking beauty and epic proportions.

Cross the threshold between reality and legend . . .

Reviews -

For journalist student, Jake Sorensen, getting a summer internship with the PAMMCO Magazine in Saudi Arabia is a dream come true. He is able to learn how magazines are both a team and an individual effort. When he meets two Americans, who have been in the country for over twenty years, he learns of an evil that stalks a part of the desert named the Great Empty Quarter. The two Americans are Oilmen and have been in many of the deserts of Saudi Arabia and tell the tale of their narrow escape from death and their rescue by the "White Bedouin". Jake is intrigued and sets out to learn all he can about him.

In his search for answers he comes across oil pioneer Stephen Markham, who mysteriously disappeared shortly before his contract was over. The company files are old, dusty and provide little information. Jake is even more determined to find out all he can about the two men, one Stephen Markham and the other the White Bedouin. His search leads him to unlikely sources, all in his quest for answers. Jake is able to piece together bits of Markham's last assignment in Saudi Arabia before Markham is declared lost, and presumed dead.

Stephen Markham finds himself in Saudi Arabia working for CALTOC, during the Depression, looking for oil in the sands of Arabia. The people and the culture are completely foreign and a large unknown. As he adjusts to the environment, he finds himself assigned to a solo expedition to the deep end of the desert. As Stephen works in an area of the desert known as the Empty Quarter, he learns to love and respect the local nomadic Bedouin tribes. Time passes and he becomes friends with Al-Ibrahim, who is the leader of his tribe. He begins to fall for Al-Ibrahim's favorite daughter and is torn between his and her worlds. He meets two German Biblical scholars who are working for Hitler and are attempting to follow the trail of the Israelites' exodus from Egypt.

What could convince a man to go into the deep end of the desert, fall in love, give up all he is and still believe in a loving God? This book was fun to read and hard to put down. I thoroughly enjoyed the story and have dreams of visiting the enchanting places that the story is based on. The one interesting surprise I had while reading this book were the quotes from numerous religious sources. The informational and historical footnotes did not detract from the story. This is a VERY satisfying read and HIGHLY recommended.

—Karen Hamilton