The verdict is out. The New York Times has named the best books of 2012. Some the authors listed include Zadie Smith and author of Zeitoun, David Eggers. The book list includes both fiction and non-fiction. Here's the paragraph on the Eggers new book, A Hologram For the King: "In an empty city in Saudi Arabia, a ­middle-aged American businessman waits day after day to close the deal he hopes will redeem his forlorn life. Eggers, continuing the worldly outlook that informed his recent books “Zeitoun” and “What Is the What,” spins this spare story — a globalized “Death of a Salesman” — into a tightly controlled parable of America’s international standing and a riff on middle-class decline that approaches Beckett in its absurdist despair.You can get snippets about the books before you decide to read them."

The books have been selected by the editors of The New York Times Book Review.

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"The Arab Spring left the Gulf state of Oman relatively unscathed, with long-term ruler Sultan Qaboos moving to quieten discontent by introducing reforms, but how long can tradition hold back calls for change?"

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