T. E. Lawrence: British Library Historic Lives (New York University Press)

T.E. Lawrence (1888-1935)known worldwide as Lawrence of Arabia was many people in one: scholar, archaeologist, intelligence officer, guerrilla leader, diplomat, aspiring writer, and ordinary serviceman hiding under aliases from the celebrity he had first largely created and then come to despise. Illegitimate, but with aristocratic connections, an outsider yet also at ease with, and much admired by, many of his finest contemporaries, he was a man forever on the run, whether as a youth searching for fresh experience and fame, or a middle-aged figure seeking sanctuary both from his reputation and from a sense of guilt, resulting from wartime experiences from which he could never break free. Deeply religious by background, sexually ambiguous and always on the edge, he craved for peace, but was also convinced he deserved punishment.

This new biography by Malcolm Brown, a well-known authority on Lawrence, is part fast-moving adventure story, part modern morality tale, and places special emphasis on the years of the Arab revolt: the period that both made Lawrence and broke him.

Thoroughly illustrated with portraits, a rich range of photographs, letters in Lawrence's hand and extracts from his writings, T.E. Lawrence presents a compelling portrait of a remarkable man."