In its May 31 issue, The Economist included a review of a recent work by Pascal Menoret, NYU Abu Dhabi professor of Middle Eastern Studies. Titled "Fast and furious," the article discusses Menoret's book, Joyriding in Riyadh: Oil, Urbanism, and Road Revolt in Saudi Arabia.

Referencing Menoret's extended stay in the Saudi Arabian capital — his book is based on four years of fieldwork in Riyadh — the review states: "Good anthropologists aim to enter into the minds of their subjects, sharing their lifestyle, acquiring their language, studying their moods and responses but always maintaining an objective self-awareness. Pascal Menoret is better than good."

Through "trials that he describes so amusingly," Menoret reveals "as much about one of the world's least understood societies as do the kindness and friendship he also receives." In short, the article says, "Mr Menoret's sympathetic study of this enduring subculture is both fascinating and disturbing."

Click the link below to read the review in its entirety.

• Fast and furious (The Economist)