The shah of Iran would remain on the throne for the foreseeable future: This was the firm conclusion of a 1978 CIA analysis. One hundred days later the shah was overthrown by a popular revolution. The CIA was not alone in its myopia, as Kurzman reveals in this penetrating work; Iranians themselves considered a revolution inconceivable until it actually occurred. This book offers rare insight into the nature and evolution of the Iranian revolution and into the ultimate unpredictability of protest movements in general.