Simons describes the current human-rights situation in Saudi Arabia with reference to corruption, the treatment of dissidents, the penal system, the suppression of women, slavery and other aspects. A detailed history, from pre-Islamic times to the present, is provided, with attention to the influence of Mohammed, the Saudi ascendancy, the role of the West, the discovery of oil and the wars in the region. Finally attention is given to the various (economic/political/religious) problems that today face the Saudi regime and to the Saudi response.