According to IBNA, Saremi said: "Michael Axworthy believes that the Achaemenid Empire was so expansive to an extent which developed its culture in a vast part of Asia and it could be called 'Empire of the Mind'."
The book, offers the reader a compelling overview of Iranian history from the earliest times to the present. It highlights the uniqueness of Iranian identity, as one of the oldest enduring civilizations in the world. In doing so, as well as covering military and dynastic matters, it emphasizes the role of cultural and intellectual movements in Iran to demonstrate how Iran has had an influence in the Middle East and Asia beyond her borders through the power of Persian culture rather than through conventional political and military means — an 'Empire of the Mind' as much as an 'Empire of the Sword'.
Axworthy also conveys some of the under-appreciated and misunderstood aspects of the history of Iran in the last fifty to sixty years, particularly religious developments, ignorance of which has contributed to the baffled incomprehension with which many contemporary Westerners view the country.
As a teenager, Axworthy traveled to Iran several times in the 1970s and served as the head of Iran Section in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) from 1998-2000. He was also appointed director of Exeter University's new Center for Persian and Iranian Studies (CPIS) in the autumn of 2008
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