Includes bibliographical references and index.

Can oil bring happiness? alternate visions of Saudi Aramco -- Driving while female: protesting the ban on women driving -- Saudi modern: art on the edge -- Finding science in the Qur'an: creationism and concordism in Islam -- Roads of Arabia: archaeology in service of the kingdom -- Saving Jeddah, the bride of the Red Sea -- Who can go to Mecca? conversion and pilgrimage in Islam.

"For many people, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia evokes images of deserts, camels, and oil, along with rich sheiks in white robes, oppressed women in black veils, and terrorists. But when Loring Danforth travelled through the country in 2011, he found a world much more complex and inspiring than he could have ever imagined. With vivid descriptions and moving personal narratives, Danforth takes us across the kingdom from the headquarters of Saudi Aramco, the country's national oil company, on the Persian Gulf to the centuries-old city of Jeddah on the Red Sea coast. He presents detailed portraits of a young woman jailed for protesting the ban on women driving, a Sufi scholar encouraging Muslims and Christians to struggle together with love to know God, and an artist citing the Qur'an and using metal gears and chains to celebrate the diversity of the pilgrims who come to Mecca"--Provided by publisher.