The years 1954–1958 in Syria are popularly known as "The Democratic Years," a brief period of civilian government before the consolidation of authoritarian rule. Kevin W. Martin provides a cultural history of the period and argues that the authoritarian outcome was anything but inevitable. Examining the flourishing broadcast and print media of the time, he focuses on three public figures, experts whose professions—law, the military, and medicine—projected modernity and modeled the new Arab citizen. This experiment with democracy, however abortive, offers a model of governance from Syria's historical experience that could serve as an alternative to dictatorship.

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Martin's work is a successful and nuanced account of the historical contingencies that contributed to the resilience of Syrian authoritarianism.

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Syria's Democratic Years is a gem that deserves an audience beyond historians of 20th century Syria. The writing is lucid, at times elegant. The study of middlebrow media is enriched by interviews in Damascus, memoirs, archives, court records, and United States diplomatic records. Martin shows a deft touch for using cultural theory and comparative history to lend the book intellectual depth and relevance beyond the case at hand.