The interviews and speeches included in this volume recreate for us, as no other book could, the era during which Pakistan was stable, prosperous, and held up as a model for other states in the continent. They contain candid comments, for instance, on Lal Bahadur Shastri and on the industrialists whom Ayub Khan is supposed to have patronized, whereas in fact he decried the concentration of wealth. He also criticizes the bureaucracy and makes decentralization his prescription for progress. The volume clears away many misconceptions about this little-appreciated ruler. His interviews reflect a man with a vision, free from all religious and ethnic bigotry. He upheld the ideals of Sir Syed Ahmed Khan for modernization of the thought process rather than regression in the face of this fast progressing world. Ayub Khan's interviews transcend the boundaries of timesince nothing has changedespecially in the politics of the country.