“I’m personally against seeing my pictures and statues in the streets, but it’s what the people want.” — Saparmurat Niyazov, dictator of Turkmenistan

Originally published: Great Britain: Atlantic Books, 2005.

What did dictators eat? Sometimes simply obscene amounts of the best their nations could offer, but more often their humble origins, or embarrassing medical con

Despite billions of dollars of aid and the best efforts of the international community to improve economies and bolster democracy across Africa, violent dictato

“Amazing stories . . . Intimate portraits of how [these five ruthless leaders] were at home and at the table.” —Lulu Garcia-Navarro, NPR’s Weekend Editi