A recent history of the Middle Eastern conflicts as witnessed by Pulitzer-prize winning journalist Thomas Friedman, From Beirut to Jerusalem, is an excellent read for anyone seeking a fuller understanding of the causes and effects of the region's constant strife.Geoffrey Bibby's Looking for Dilmun includes several chapters on the archaeological excavations on Failaka Island and also paints an interesting picture of life in Kuwait in the 1950s and '60s.The New Arabians by Peter Mansfield has a good summary chapter on Kuwait's history.The Modern History of Kuwait 1750-1965 by Ahmad Mustafa Abu-Hakima is a detailed account written by a Kuwaiti scholar based in Canada. It's widely available in Kuwait and is worth a look, especially for the old photographs documenting life in Kuwait in the early years of the 20th century.The Ministry of Information publishes a number of books on the Iraqi invasion and the Gulf War. These include a rather gruesome collection of photographs of Iraqi atrocities in occupied Kuwait called The Mother of Crimes against Kuwait in Pictures. Michael McKinnon and Peter Vine's book Tides of War: Eco-Disaster in the Gulf looks at the ecological consequences of the oil slicks and fires set intentionally by the retreating Iraqis.