Name: Journeys of a Sufi Musician
Brand: Kudsi Erguner
Price: 24.95 USD
Availability: InStock

Kudsi Erguner

Journeys of a Sufi Musician

$24.95

Kudsi Erguner spent his childhood in the Sufi gathering places of Istanbul, mastering the reed flute of the Turkish Mevlevi tradition; and his adulthood roaming the world, performing with the likes of Peter Brook, Jean-Michel Jarre and Peter Gabriel.

The collision of the vanishing Sufi traditions and the burgeoning ‘world music’ scene is beautifully evoked here, as Kudsi interweaves recollections from his childhood with his experiences in showbiz.

A remarkable memoir of a musician at the crossroads of East and West.

Cover image for Journeys of a Sufi Musician, isbn: 9780863565472

Paul E. Mullen

Running Amok

$27.95

What drives someone to commit the unthinkable? Paul E. Mullen, one of the world’s pre-eminent forensic psychiatrists, examines the complex workings of the lone multiple murderer – a spectre haunting modern societies.

With unflinching clarity, Mullen draws on his decades assessing massacre perpetrators first-hand, bringing readers into a dark landscape populated both by killers who attained the ugly fame they had sought as well as lesser-known but equally chilling cases.

Mullen illuminates the troubling patterns that unite these murderers, such as obsessive rage; personal grievance; fascination with weapons; and yearning for infamy. Their actions are ultimately rooted in their desire for personal destruction, often culminating in suicide. He also considers the impact of media sensationalism on the killers’ grandiose fantasies, often inspiring copycat violence, and proposes steps toward better threat assessment and identification of warning signs.

Challenging myths around madness and violence, Mullen reveals the unsettling truth: lone mass killers are not incomprehensible monsters, but deeply disturbed people shaped by knowable forces that, when properly understood, can be countered effectively.

Cover image for Running Amok, isbn: 9781917569002

Le Clerc Xavier

A Man With No Title

$16.95

Mohand-Said Ait-Taleb is an enigma. Living in France but ravaged by memories of the war in Algeria, he has withdrawn into his own world, away from his wife and children. When his son Xavier discovers articles by Albert Camus describing the appalling conditions his father grew up in, he starts to piece together the story of his life.

Xavier retraces the steps of this dignified, illiterate and strong-willed man: from Kabylia – where starving children, like Mohand-Said, fought with dogs for scraps – to the metal factory in Normandy, where his father would spend the rest of his days, consumed with providing for his family. It is there that Xavier discovers his love of books. When he breaks with conservative family traditions and confesses his attraction to men, Xavier will find which doors slam closed and which will open.

A Man With No Title is a beautiful and moving tribute to a father, to the immigrants condemned to undertake the hardest work for meagre reward, and to the power of literature to transcend class.

Cover image for A Man With No Title, isbn: 9780863569821

Harry Silman

A Cool Head in Hell

$21.95

Harry Silman joined the British army in 1939. As a medicalofficer under bombardment on the beaches of Dunkirk in 1940, he was one of the last soldiers to be shipped out during the mass retreat.

When Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, his division was assigned to assist in the defence of Singapore; they arrived just before the island fell to Japanese forces in 1942. Harry spent the rest of the war in the notorious Changi POW camp and upcountry at Hellfire Pass, where he tended to the wounded and dying men who were forced to labour on the Burma Railway.Throughout, Harry kept diaries – highly secret, illegal, and dangerous for a POW. He managed to write a detailed account of his harrowing experiences in the camps when he himself was weakened and exhausted, caring as best he could for hundreds of desperately ill men. Articulate, graphic, compassionate, and lit with good humour, this is Harry’s war in his own words.

His diaries, arguably one of the most comprehensive surviving contemporaneous accounts of this period of World War Two, have been edited with great care and illuminating commentary by his daughter, Jacqueline Passman.

Cover image for A Cool Head in Hell, isbn: 9781917569064

Joanna Barakat

Narrative Threads

$49.95

For centuries, Palestinian women wrote the stories of their lives and land with a needle and thread. Their embroidery, or tatreez, inspired hundreds of artists who reinterpreted and transformed it into a symbol of Palestinian identity, steadfastness and resistance.

Narrative Threads celebrates the immense beauty and significance of Palestinian embroidery in contemporary art. Joanna Barakat documents and features more than 200 works by twenty-four established and emerging artists, who incorporate the motifs and symbolism of tatreez across diverse media – from painting, sculpture and textile to film, photography and street art. While some artists preserve traditional forms, others transform tatreez to explore themes of displacement, resilience and belonging. Together, their works offer a dynamic reflection on Palestinian heritage and identity.

With insightful essays by leading art historians Dr Tina Sherwell, Wafa Ghnaim and Rachel Dedman, Narrative Threads reveals the power of Palestinian embroidery as a visual language that recounts the past, connects us to the present and envisions a different, hopeful future.

Cover image for Narrative Threads, isbn: 9781849250818

Maggie Gee

My Animal Life

$21.95

"A wise and beautiful book about what it feels like to be aliveI really loved it."Zadie Smith

"Maggie Gee's account of her life as a writer cuts to the bone as she relives triumphs, rejections, despair and renewal. It's a wonderful book, for its boldness and vigour, and for its piercing honesty."Claire Tomalin

How do you become a writer, and why?

Maggie Gee's journey starts in a small family in post-war Britain, a long way from the literary world. At seventeen, Maggie goes, a lamb to the slaughter, to university. From the 1960s onwards she lives the defining events of her generation: the coming of the Pill and sexual freedom, tremors in the British layer-cake of class and race. In the 1980s, Maggie finally gets published, falls in love, marries, and has a daughterbut for the next three decades and beyond, she survives, and sometimes thrives, by writing. This frank, bold memoir dares to explore the big questions: success and failure, sex, death, and parenthoodour animal life.

Maggie Gee was chosen as one of Granta's original Best Young British Novelists. She has published many novels to great acclaim, including The White Family, shortlisted for the Orange and IMPAC prizes; My Cleaner; The Flood, longlisted for the Orange Prize; and The Ice People. She was the first female chair of the Royal Society of Literature from 20042008 and is now one of its vice presidents.

Cover image for My Animal Life, isbn: 9781846599873

Greppi Carlo

A Man of Few Words

$26.95

‘Nobody knows how much I owe that man’, Primo Levi said of the bricklayer who saved his life at Auschwitz. ‘I could never repay him.’ Levi was referring to Lorenzo Perrone, who – at great personal risk – smuggled food, letters and clothing to Levi and other prisoners. The soup might contain sparrows’ wings, prune stones, or even fragments of pulped newspaper, but it provided Levi with the 500 extra calories he needed to survive each day. Perrone said nothing as he left the mess tin by a half-constructed brick wall.

In A Man of Few Words, Carlo Greppi pieces together Levi’s saviour, a near-destitute labourer with minimal formal education. Despite their stark differences, Levi and Perrone’s friendship survived the Holocaust and continued until Perrone’s tragic death. Levi never forgot Perrone. As his friend withdrew from the world, Levi tried persistently to preserve the memory of this man of few words who had saved his life, but who left few traces of his own behind.

Compassionate, worldly and prescient, Greppi brings to light a universal story about an individual who kept hope alive in one of the darkest times and places known to man.

Cover image for A Man of Few Words, isbn: 9781908906618

Dabrowska Haren

Mohamed Makiya

$27.95

‘Makiya was Baghdad and Baghdad was Makiya.’ These words sum up the life of one of the Middle East’s most famous architects, whose career spanned seven decades and included projects in more than ten countries. Mohamed Makiya was a master of incorporating traditional styles into modern architecture.

Cover image for Mohamed Makiya, isbn: 9780863564161

Gardner Thomspon

Legacy of Empire

$26.95

It is now more than seventy years since the creation of the state of Israel, yet its origins and the British Empire’s historic responsibility for Palestine remain little known. Confusion persists too as to the distinction between anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism. In Legacy of Empire, Gardner Thompson offers a clear-eyed review of political Zionism and Britain’s role in shaping the history of Palestine and Israel.

Thompson explores why the British government adopted Zionism in the early twentieth century, issuing the Balfour Declaration in 1917 and then retaining it as the cornerstone of their rule in Palestine after the First World War. Despite evidence and warnings, over the next two decades Britain would facilitate the colonisation of Arab Palestine by Jewish immigrants, ultimately leading to a conflict which it could not contain. Britain’s response was to propose the partition of an ungovernable land: a ‘two-state solution’ which – though endorsed by the United Nations after the Second World War – has so far brought into being neither two states nor a solution.

A highly readable and compelling account of Britain’s rule in Palestine, Legacy of Empire is essential for those wishing to better understand the roots of this enduring conflict.

Cover image for Legacy of Empire, isbn: 9780863563614

Halıcı Nevin

Sufi Cuisine

$26.95

‘We are the flowers in the garden of the heavens; we are mezze and wine at God’s gathering.’ Rumi

A dervish’s training begins in the kitchen. The preparation and festive consumption of food is intrinsically connected to the spiritual practice of Sufism.

Sufi Cuisine offers a sumptuous assortment of dishes inspired by the teachings of the thirteenth century Sufi mystic Rumi, alongside selections of his sayings and parables. Lavishly illustrated, it brings together more than one hundred easy to follow recipes – from chickpea soup and lamb served with plums and sweet spinach, to desserts including candied rose petals and almond halvah, followed by Turkish coffee.

This delightful cookbook provides a unique window into a rich cultural history. It is the ideal introduction to the transformative art of Sufi cooking – restorative for the stomach, spirit and soul.

Cover image for Sufi Cuisine, isbn: 9780863568367

Dalia Al-Dujaili

Babylon, Albion

$18.95

Whoever said nature is still has not borne witness to the migration of the seasons.

In this lyrical enquiry, Dalia Al-Dujaili considers what it means to belong in your land. She traces the rich heritage of the earth beneath our feet and the wildlife that call it home – from the oak tree and date palm to fairytale creatures, such as dragons, unicorns and the ancient Lamassu. Weaving together Arab and Islamic mythology with the English and Christian pastoral, Al-Dujaili unmasks the communal lush, familiar and, at times, dark places we share.

A love song to Britain, Iraq and the body of earth we hold in common, Babylon, Albion is a compelling re-imagining of what it means to be native.

Cover image for Babylon, Albion, isbn: 9781849250719

Hamdy Basma

Khatt

$35.00

Egyptian cities and villages abound with an enormous wealth of khatt, or calligraphic script, ranging from casual scrawls and scribbles to elaborately-painted colourful murals. These historical and contemporary versions of urban lettering , varying in surface, medium and technique, adorn mosques, shop-fronts, houses, trucks, boats, schools, tuk tuks and walls. They are records of human existence, documenting expressions of hope, fears, dreams and anxieties.

Featuring beautiful, unique examples of these written expressions, Khatt is an extensive visual documentation of the found typography and calligraphy in Egypt, a calligraphy hub that possesses a rich tradition of education and production in the field. This timely volume records the traditional craftsmanship of hand-painted calligraphy, in decline because of the digitisation of the Arabic script.

Basma Hamdy is a research-based designer, author and educator. Currently Assistant Professor of Graphic Design at Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar, Hamdy earned an MFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art and a Post-Baccalaureate Certificate from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her publications include Walls of Freedom: Street Art of the Egyptian Revolution.

Noha Zayed is a photographer currently based in Cairo, Egypt. Zayed has exhibited in festivals across the Middle East. Her other creative endeavors include film and music projects such as a documentary on travel and education aired on Al Jazeera in 2017.

Cover image for Khatt, isbn: 9780863569012

Blaise Ducos

Rembrandt, Vermeer and the Dutch Golden Age

$50.00

Rembrandt, Vermeer and the Dutch Golden Age presents the finest pieces from one of the most important private collections in the field, The Leiden Collection, New York, alongside a selection from the Louvre’s own holdings.

This exhibition catalogue highlights Dutch culture through the artwork of its halcyon days. Seventeenth-century Holland experienced unprecedented prosperity, leading the way for European trade and science. And in art, Dutch artists pioneered still life, landscape and genre painting. The detailed realism of the paintings of the Dutch Golden Age sets it apart from the outlandish splendour typical of the Baroque movement. Portraiture also underwent a revival in form and popularity during this period.

Alongside Rembrandt, artists such as Jan Lievens, Gerrit Dou, Frans van Mieris, Frans Hals and and that virtuoso master of genre painting Johannes Vermeer were prolific during this time. They infused new life into Dutch art and together their vision created a national artistic awakening. Here, their collective work provides a dazzling glimpse into the Dutch Golden Age.

Cover image for Rembrandt, Vermeer and the Dutch Golden Age, isbn: 9780863563218

Guene Faiza

Discretion

$18.95

Deftly moving between Algeria and Paris, bestselling novelist Faïza Guène's Discretion compellingly evokes the realities of a first- and second-generation family as they carve out a future for themselves in France, finding one another as they go along.

Yamina Taleb is approaching her seventieth birthday. These days, she strives for a quiet life, grateful to the country that hosts her and her adored family. The closest she gets to drama is scooping ‘revolutionary’ bargains in the form of plastic kitchenware gadgets.

But Yamina’s children feel differently. They don’t always fit in in Paris, and it hurts. Omar wonders whether it’s too late to change course as he watches the world pass him by from the driver’s seat of his Uber. His sisters are tired of having to prove themselves, and their allegiance, to a place that is at once home, and not. When the whole family goes away on holiday – not to the motherland, but to a villa-with-pool rental near the Atlantic coast – the Talebs come to realise just how family defines our sense of belonging.

Alternating fragments from Yamina’s Algerian past with those of her Paris present, Discretion spans the history of colonial conflict from the Second World War to the present day. A tribute to mothers everywhere, it is also the story of a modern French family feeling their way through the puzzle of their history – and finding one another as they go along.

Cover image for Discretion, isbn: 9780863564024

Abdullah al-Udhari

Classical Poems by Arab Women

$17.95

Arab women poets have been around since the earliest of times, yet their diwans (collected poems) were kept in the shadows.

Spanning more than 5000 years, from the pre-Islamic to the Andalusian periods, Classical Poems by Arab Women presents rarely seen work by over sixty women writers who boldly refused to be silenced. From sorrowful eulogies to gleeful scorn, this collection offers a rich excursion into the vibrant, exclusively female worlds of pleasure, passion and pain, suppressed for centuries by religious and political bigotry.

With poems in both English and Arabic, this bespoke gift edition celebrates feminine wit and desire, and pays homage to the significant contribution women have made to Arabic literary tradition.

Cover image for Classical Poems by Arab Women, isbn: 9780863569340

Ian Rutledge

Sea of Troubles

$35.00

In the second half of the eighteenth century, approximately three quarters of the Mediterranean coastline and its hinterlands were controlled by a vast Islamic power, the centuries-old Ottoman Empire. However, by the end of the First World War in November 1918, this great civilization-once regarded by Christian Europe with awe and fear-had been completely subjugated, its territories occupied by European powers.

The history of imperialism in the Mediterranean involves not one but six European powers-Britain, France, Italy, Spain, Austria-Hungary, and Russia- jostling for control of the trade, lands, and wealth of those they saw as the existential “other.” The competition between these states made their conquest of the Islamic Mediterranean a far more difficult and extended task than they encountered elsewhere in the world. Yet, as new contenders entered the contest, and as the rivalries in the Mediterranean intensified in the early twentieth century, events would spiral out of control as the continent headed towards the First World War.

Set against a background of intense imperial rivalry, Sea of Troubles is the first definitive account of the European conquest of the Levant and North Africa in the last three centuries.

Cover image for Sea of Troubles, isbn: 9780863569500

Mineke Schipper

The Shrinking Goddess

$24.95

A radical exploration of the power and public (mis)representation of women’s bodies, from ancient mysteries to the present day.

Wild and strange stories have been told about the female body since antiquity. While legends of poisoned hymens and fanged vaginas circulated, the first creation figure, Mother Earth, fell out of popular cultural history and Christianity introduced the birth of woman, Eve, from a crooked rib. Ranging from the empowering to the absurd, ancient tales about the female figure and gendered body parts have not only survived the twenty-first century but continue to influence modern discourse.

The Shrinking Goddess brings together these myths about the female form and traces subsequent male efforts to ‘tame’ it. Mineke Schipper examines how women’s bodies have been represented since records began – the first Venus and vulva figures date to 40,000 BCE – and around the world, from the so-called island of menstruating men in Papua New Guinea to the Japanese supermarkets and European festivals where ‘breast puddings’ are still considered delicacies. Drawing together the vast reservoir of myths, proverbs, art, science and scripture that shape how women are seen in the present day, Schipper reclaims the female body as a source of power.

The Shrinking Goddess will appeal to readers of Mary Beard, Angela Davis, Betty Friedan, Germaine Greer, Audre Lorde and Marina Warner

Cover image for The Shrinking Goddess, isbn: 9781908906595

Idries Trevathan

Colour, Light and Wonder in Islamic Art

$69.95

The experience of colour in Islamic visual culture has historically been overlooked. In his approach to the study of colour in Islamic art, Trevathan creates meaningful dialogue between artistic production, artistic media, and the intellectual, aesthetic and philosophical concepts relating to the subject. Here, he proposes an enlightened new approach to the way we consider colour in Islamic art and architecture. Examining works in relation to their aesthetic contexts, he reveals the relevance of choice colours used in artworks, which in turn provides insights into the pre-modern Muslim experience of colour and aesthetics.

The seventeenth-century Masjid-i Shah mosque in Isfahan, Iran, represents one of the finest examples of colour-use on a grand scale. The building of Masjid-i Shah emerged alongside, or as a result of, a culmination of writings on light and colour by some of the most important scholars in Islamic and Persian history. Trevathan examines the philosophical and mystical traditions that formed the backdrop of the Masjid-i Shah, revealing the differences in how such artworks were conceptualized at the time of creation and how they are received today.

Through addressing the artistic production of this masterpiece of Islamic architecture, Trevathan shows that the careful combination of colour and design proportions in Islamic patterns expresses knowledge beyond those perceived in the corporeal world. This includes how the experience of bright and luminous colours may have served an epistemological function leading towards a noetic understanding of God. This suggests that a broader consideration of Islamic aesthetics is required, one that encompasses the potential for sensual experience to prompt a journey beyond sentient knowledge.

Cover image for Colour, Light and Wonder in Islamic Art, isbn: 9780863561450

Nasir al Din al Tusi

The Sultan's Sex Potions

$29.95

Arabic erotic literature has a long and rich history, which goes back as far as the ninth century. Far from being the pursuit of prurient pornographers, eroticism and sexuality received considerable attention from scholars. Written by Nasir al-Din al-Tusi (12011274), one of the leading scientists of the age, The Sultan's Sex Potions is part of a group of works devoted to aphrodisiacs as well as sexual stimulants, sexual practices, and positions.

Sober and measured in tone, the work was intended to be a manual that would allow the patient to dispense with the services of a physician. Written at the request of the ruler, its potions, electuaries, syrups, and enemas enjoyed a "royal warrant of appointment" to arouse the lust for coitus and enhance sexual potency.

This volume includes a critical edition of three manuscripts (Berlin, Cairo, and Glasgow) and is accompanied by a translation, as well as an introduction to Arabic erotic literature, a biography of the author, and extensive indexes.

A Persian polymath and prolific writer, Nasir al-Din al-Tusi (12011274) built up a large body of work ranging across a number of disciplines including mathematics, geometry, mineralogy, astronomy, medicine, philosophy, and theology. The Muslim scholar Ibn Khaldun (13321406) considered al-Tusi to be the greatest of the later Persian scholars.

Daniel L. Newman is head of the Arabic Studies department, professor of Arabic, and course director of the MA in ArabicEnglish Translation and Interpreting at the University of Durham, England.

Cover image for The Sultan's Sex Potions, isbn: 9780863567476

Naguib Mahfouz

The Quarter

$14.95

Meet the people of Cairo’s Gamaliya quarter. There is Nabqa, son of Adam the waterseller who can only speak truths; the beautiful and talented Tawhida who does not age with time; Ali Zaidan, the gambler, late to love; and Boss Saqr who stashes his money above the bath. A neighbourhood of demons, dancing and sweet halva, the quarter keeps quiet vigil over the secrets of all who live there.

This collection by pre-eminent Egyptian writer Naguib Mahfouz was recently discovered among his old papers. Found with a slip of paper titled ‘for publishing 1994’, they are published here for the first time. Resplendent with Mahfouz’s delicate and poignant observations of everyday happenings, these lively stories take the reader deep into the beating heart of Cairo.

Cover image for The Quarter, isbn: 9780863563751

Abidi Maliha

Rise

$29.95

Rise celebrates the uplifting and inspiring stories of 100 remarkable women of colour. From the entrepreneur with a homemade marmalade business who went on to found Women World Banking, to the educator who built the first university in the world; and from the athlete who fled civil war on a sinking boat and then swam in the Olympics, to the first Black female astronaut, these trailblazers have risen above challenges to reach dizzying heights.

These scientists, entertainers, sportswomen, leaders, artists and activists hail from more than 40 countries. Past and present, famous and forgotten, they have worked both behind the scenes and under public scrutiny to make our world a better place.

Featuring stunning portrait illustrations by acclaimed artist Maliha Abidi, Rise reveals the creativity, resilience and bravery of these pioneers; essential reading for all.

Cover image for Rise, isbn: 9780863561375

Abdulaziz M. Aldukheil

An Optimum Base For Pricing Middle Eastern Crude Oil

$59.95

Focusing on Saudi Arabia, Abdulaziz M. Aldukheil examines the deficiencies of present price-setting methods where production (extraction), trade, return on foreign investment and the subsequent investment of surplus revenues present complex questions for the Saudi Arabian economy.

Cover image for An Optimum Base For Pricing Middle Eastern Crude Oil, isbn: 9780863565434

Blaise Ducos

Rembrandt, Vermeer et le siècle d’or hollandais

$50.00

Rembrandt, Vermeer et le Siècle d’or hollandais présente les pièces les plus remarquables de l’une des collections particulières les plus importantes dans ce domaine, la collection Leiden, New York, ainsi qu’un choix d’oeuvres provenant du Louvre.

Ce catalogue d’exposition met en lumière l’extraordinaire épanouissement de l’art au dix-septième siècle, pendant la période appelée Siècle d’or hollandais, marquée par une prospérité sans précédent. Pionniers de la nature morte, du réalisme, du portrait, du paysage, de la peinture de genre, des artistes tels que Rembrandt, Vermeer, Jan Lievens, Gérard Dou, Frans van Mieris ou Frans Hals ont insufflé une vie nouvelle dans l’art hollandais, suscitant un réveil artistique national.

Leurs oeuvres réunies ici donnent un aperçu du Siècle d’or hollandais, ce temps où l’ouverture vers de nouveaux horizons engendra des formes d’expression artistique captivantes.

Cover image for Rembrandt, Vermeer et le siècle d’or hollandais, isbn: 9780863563904

Chaouki Chamoun

The Art and Life of Chaouki Chamoun

$55.00

Chaouki Chamoun is one of the Middle East's most renowned artists. With 319 color plates to illustrate his story, Chamoun leads us through his own artistic journey, showing how the schools of the modern era have informed his technique and imagery, and how he has been motivated and inspired as much by the tiniest details of a pebble as by the political turmoil visited on his homeland.

Born in Lebanon in 1942, Chaouki Chamoun has participated in over fifty group art shows and biennales since 1969. He is the president of the Lebanese Artists Association and has studied at both Syracuse and New York universities.

Cover image for The Art and Life of Chaouki Chamoun, isbn: 9780863567919

Ipek Çalislar

Madam Atatürk

$25.95

"Sumptuous, surprising, and profound."Orhan Pamuk

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk is hailed as one of the most charismatic political leaders of the twentieth century, but little is known today about his one and only wife, Latife Hanim. A multilingual intellectual who read law at the Sorbonne, she was a suffragist who closely followed women's movements around the world.

Her marriage set her apart from her contemporaries, raising her to the pinnacle of political power, truly able to work for the betterment of the women of Turkey. But just after two and a half years, Atatürk divorced her and Hanim was forgotten and maligned. Public opinion became dominated by the image of a sharp-tongued, quarrelsome woman who strained Atatürk's nerves.

In the first biography to be written on Latife Hanim, Ipek Çalislar reveals an astonishing woman, ahead of her time.

Ipek Çalislar is a journalist and writer. She has worked for the Turkish daily Cumhuriyet for twelve years, as news editor and later as the Sunday supplement editor. An international bestseller, Madam Atatürk is her first literary work.

Feyza Howell was born in 1957 in Izmur, Turkey. Her translations include Fiasco by Coskun Büktel, The Book of Madness by Levent Senyürek, and The Concubine by Gül Irepolgu.

Cover image for Madam Atatürk, isbn: 9780863568428

Suheil Bushrui

The Literary Heritage of the Arabs

$54.95

The breadth of Arabic literature produced by Arab writers from pre-Islamic times to the contemporary period reveals a world of thought and feeling largely unseen and unheard in the English-speaking world. In this wide-ranging and unique anthology, works by Christian, Jewish, and Muslim authors show the genius of Arab civilization through the prism of literature.

Through odes (or Mu’allaqat); selections from the Qur’an; samples of Hadith and the poetry of rivalry, love, adventure, and mystic transcendence; and prose conveying scientific innovation, philosophical inquiry, theological disputation, and historical analysis, this extraordinary collection provides an authoritative overview of Arabic literature.

Cover image for The Literary Heritage of the Arabs, isbn: 9780863568244

Olivia Snaije

Keep Your Eye on the Wall

$69.95

"Shockingly beautiful and evocative . . . the artists echo the feelings of Palestinians who have to make do with life in a divided, disfigured land."—Raja Shehadeh

In art and literature, walls are frequently used as powerful symbols of division. For the people of Palestine, however, the wall that cuts deeply into their land and society is all too real, snaking through over seven hundred kilometres of the West Bank. It throttles Palestinians, seals off Israelis, and all but guarantees perpetual ignorance, fear, and rage on both sides.

Keep Your Eye on the Wall brings together seven award-winning artist-photographers and four essayists, all responding to the Wall in images or words, specially commissioned for this book. The photographers present unique perspectives, whether documenting the journey of laborers across the barrier, the desolation of abandoned checkpoints, or the tattered posters of "martyrs" on a wall in Gaza.

Featuring the photographic work of Taysir Batniji, Raed Bawayah, Rula Halawani, Noel Jabbour, Raeda Saadeh, Steve Sabella, and Kai Wiedonhöfer, and the words of Malu Halasa, Yael Lerer, Christine Leuenberger, and Adania Shibli.

Olivia Snaije is the books editor for Harper's Bazaar Art and a reporter for Beirut's Daily Star. She was formerly executive editor at Alef, a London-based magazine covering Middle Eastern culture, and editor-in-chief of World Media in Paris.

Mitchell Albert was the program director of Writers' Centre Norwich and the former editorial director of PEN International. He is currently associate editor of Steppe, a magazine of Central Asian arts and culture.

Cover image for Keep Your Eye on the Wall, isbn: 9780863567599

Abdel Bari Atwan

A Country of Words

$29.95

“Atwan's 1996 interview with bin Laden in his Afghanistan redoubt was one of the first and remains one of the best. Atwan ‘got it’ from the moment bin Laden appeared on the scene. . . . What many [Muslims] hate is not the American people but American foreign policy.”—Michael Scheuer, the founding head of the CIA's Osama bin Laden unit, in The Washington Post review of The Secret Life of al-Qa'ida

In A Country of Words, Abdel Bari Atwan shares his many extraordinary encounters, including tea with Margaret Thatcher, a weekend with Osama bin Laden, intimate meetings with Yasser Arafat, and the row between Colonel Gaddafi and the Shah of Iran that earned him his first journalistic break. But his is also a touching personal journey, none more so than when he describes taking his London-born children back to meet his family living in a Palestinian refugee camp.

I was offered a bed, sharing a cave with Osama bin Laden himself. This “bed” was a mattress lying across several crates of grenades, with an arsenal of rifles and machine guns suspended from the ceiling above, which—together with a cockerel outside who wouldn't stop crowing—did not make for an easy night’s sleep. Bin Laden had no such problems and slumbered like a baby until dawn, his kalashnikov at his side.

Born in Gaza in 1950, Abdel Bari Atwan left at age seventeen and has since become one of the world’s foremost commentators on the Middle East. For the last twenty years he has edited the independent Arabic daily, London-based al-Quds al-Arabi. He is the author of The Secret History of al-Qa'ida.

Cover image for A Country of Words, isbn: 9780863566219

Aziz Esmail

The Construction of Belief

$54.95

Mohammed Arkoun was one of the most prominent and influential Arab intellectuals of his day. This Festschrift honors Arkoun's scholarship, bringing together the contributions of eleven distinguished scholars of history, religious studies, and philosophy. It offers a comprehensive selection of critical engagements with Arkoun's work, reflecting on his considerable influence on contemporary thinking about Islam and its ideological, philosophical, and theological dimensions. Published in association with the Aga Khan University Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations.

Cover image for The Construction of Belief, isbn: 9780863564246

Tahir Amiraslanov

The Azerbaijani Kitchen

$35.00

Azerbaijani cuisine is one of the most ancient and varied in the world, rich with Eastern European and Western Asian influences.

Over one hundred mouth-watering recipes are included in this book: from pilafs with apricots, dates and plums, aubergine kebab and baked fish with walnuts to halva and sweet crescent pastries.

With stunning recipes and sumptuous photographs, The Azerbaijani Kitchen is a treat for food lovers and a wonderful introduction to this exotic and delicious cuisine.

Chef Tahir Amiraslanov is president of the National Culinary Association in Azerbaijan.

Leyla Rahmanova works for the Golden Books publishing house in Baku, Azerbaijani.

Cover image for The Azerbaijani Kitchen, isbn: 9780863568176

Walid Touma

My Flowers

$17.99

In this unique and insightful collection, Walid Touma shares his experiences and musings on lif eand its meaning. My Flowers invites the reader to explore their own truths and how best to live in a single moment.

Each story is imbued with its own hues and spices,and the reader is certain to find a flower which echoes some part of their own journey through life.

Cover image for My Flowers, isbn: 9780863565731

Faleh A. Jabar

Post-Marxism And The Middle East

$55.00

The chain of developments unleashed by Gorbachev’s perestroika, glasnost and ‘new political thinking’ culminated in the disintegration of what had hitherto been known in Marxist jargon as the socialist camp or the world of existing socialism. Some of the events in this process were dramatic: the execution of the Romanian dictator Ceauşescu, the collapse of the Berlin Wall and the removal of communist-led regimes through popular protest. For the Arab radicals, there was the loss of a superpower ally on whose military, economic and political patronage they could count. The demise of the Soviet Union has left a sense of desperation and angst among the new generation of Arab Marxist activists, leaders and intellectuals. The previous experiences of this generation had been traumatic. The orphans of the Gorbachev era had experienced successive defeats at the hands of the rising nationalists (Nasser of Egypt, Boumedienne of Algeria, Saddam Hussein of Iraq and Numeiri of Sudan, to name but a few). The zeal, confidence and vitality of this generation had been eroded by years of persecution, and the vacuum they had left was frequently occupied by the rising new current of Islamic fundamentalism. The Marxists who have come out of this process are very different from what they had been before it started. Various trends are now in the making. This book attempts to describe and trace the theoretical issues and endeavours which have influenced and shaped this rethinking. The chapters are structured around several major, interconnected themes: an examination of the theoretical, political and organizational responses evident so far among the Marxists in the Arab world. Needless to say, changes in this field are far from final; an analysis of abstract, theoretical issues which have a pivotal importance in the Marxist conception and are shared in different national settings; an examination of globalization; and an analysis of the demise of the Soviet Union itself on the one hand, and how this was seen by the major Arab ruling elites on the other. Most chapters have an explicit or implicit comparitive outlook that reveals to what extent Marxism in the Arab world has common inherited features with, or divergent perspectives from, it European counterpart. The contributors are well-known academics, practising politicians or both: they are all respected figures in academic and Marxist circles. They include Fred Halliday, Suzan Saunders Vosper, Maurice Godelier, Kate Soper, Ali Shamsavari and Ernesto Laclau.

Cover image for Post-Marxism And The Middle East, isbn: 9780863569616

Mohammad Rawas

The Art of Rawas

$55.00

Standing today at the peak of an outstanding artistic career, those familiar with Rawas' work will welcome this volume as a much-needed permanent source of reference. This is a unique introduction to his work with 160 reproductions presented here.

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Henry Cattan

The Garden Of Joys

$25.00

An anthology of anecdotes, fables, stories and proverbs translated from the oral tradition of the Arab lands and from Persian and Arabic literature. Features a handful of the 7000 proverbs that are still used today to adorn language and conversation.

Cover image for The Garden Of Joys, isbn: 9780863569586

Samir Khalaf

Cultural Resistance

$47.50

Khalaf explores the interplay between traditional loyalties and social change, and the failure of Arab intellectuals to serve as effective vehicles of social and political change in their societies. He also looks at the Protestant legacy in the Middle East.

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Marko Attila Hoare

The History of Bosnia

$45.00

Praise for How Bosnia Armed (2004):

“Well-searched, thoughtful and provocative . . . required reading for anyone interested in the Bosnian conflict.”—The Journal of Military History

In this first comprehensive study of national identity in Bosnia-Herzegovina, the author seeks to explain what being Bosnian means to Muslims, Serbs, Croats, and Jews.

Marko Attila Hoare is a senior research fellow in the School of Social Sciences at Kingston University.

Cover image for The History of Bosnia, isbn: 9780863569531

Roshdi Rashed

Al-Khwarizmi

$100.00

Al-Khwarizmi’s Algebra (Kitab al-Jabr wa-al-muqabala), written around 820, was the first scientific text in history to systematically present algebra as a mathematical discipline that is independent of geometry and arithmetic. Roshdi Rashed has produced the first Arabic critical edition of Al-Khwarizmi’s work, containing an annotated translation into English, an introductory essay, and extensive commentaries on the text.

Roshdi Rashed is a leading authority in the history and philosophy of science and mathematics. He is senior director of research at the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique in Paris, and is a former professor at the University of Tokyo.

Cover image for Al-Khwarizmi, isbn: 9780863564307

Barbara Drieskens

Living with Djinns

$40.00

The djinn is an invisible spirit with a will of its own that may lurk at the bottom of your teacup or seep through your pores to possess you. Djinns have long been an explanation for illness and misfortune or an excuse for unconventional behavior.

Barbara Drieskens investigates possession, manifestations, and concepts of person and space. She also explores the importance of storytelling in Egyptian society and recounts first-hand experiences of djinns in this unique ethnographic study.

Barbara Drieskens is a researcher at the Institut Français du Proche-Orient in Beirut, Lebanon.

Cover image for Living with Djinns, isbn: 9780863566950

Maliheh Afnan

$39.95

"In essence, Afnan's work is about memory, and her images of eroding traces, faces and places linger long in the memory."Rose Issa, from the preface

Maliheh Afnan's work appears "as a relic of an older civilization or an archaeological excavation into the collective psyche. The delicacy of Persian miniatures and manuscripts, which she remembers from childhood, is mirrored in her love for intimate scale and the refined beauty of muted colour."

Calligraphy plays an important role: images appear that suggest the written word. Works on paper and tablets of painted plaster are reminiscent of ancient, almost obliterated texts, and, like palimpsests, retain only some vestige of literal meaning and an impression of human contact.

Afnan has absorbed both Middle Eastern and Western influences. She has looked towards such artists as Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, Jean Dubuffet, and Paul Klee, and shares an affinity with the American artist Mark Tobey, who helped arrange the first European exhibition of her work in 1971.

Maliheh Afnan obtained an MFA from the Corcoran School of Art, Washington, DC, in 1962. Her work is represented in the Institute du Monde Arabe in Paris and in the British Museum in London. Afnan most recently exhibited at the Martin Gropius Bau Museum in Berlin (Taswir: Pictorial Mappings of Modernity & Islam).

Rose Issa is a freelance curator, specializing in contemporary visual arts and films from the Arab world and Iran.

Cover image for Maliheh Afnan, isbn: 9780863564864

Abdulhadi H. Taher

Income Determination in the International Petroleum Industry

$50.00

The treatment of joint costs, which has troubled the sector for decades, is an integral part of any study of accounting in the petroleum industry.

Abdulhadi H. Taher treats joint costs and the problem of “transfer prices” from one division of an international petroleum organization to another as an essential element in determining the revenues to be assigned to each. He also discusses the chemistry of hydrocarbons in order to determine a formal system of cost allocation.

Abdulhadi H. Taher is the former director general of the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Petroleum and Minerals, and he has served as a board member of Aramco and governor of Petromin.

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Fouad Ibrahim

The Shi'is of Saudi Arabia

$59.95

Fouad Ibrahim traces the evolution of Shi‘ite opposition in Saudi Arabia since the 1979 Shi‘ite uprisings, paying particular attention to the reform movement, which has succeeded in bringing issues of political and individual liberty to worldwide attention.

Fouad Ibrahim is an editor of Saudi Affairs. He has written extensively about Islam, Shi‘ism, and Saudi Arabia.

Cover image for The Shi'is of Saudi Arabia, isbn: 9780863569036

Alexei Vassiliev

Central Asia: Political & Economic Challenges

$55.00

This work focuses on the challenges facing the newly independent states of Central Asia - Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kirgizia and Tadjikistan. It examines the political events and socio-economic changes which followed the disintegration of the Soviet Union.

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Hussein Madi

The Art of Madi

$59.95

An invaluable overview of Hussein Madi’s work over the past four decades, in which his intensely personal fusion of European and Islamic influences presents itself with a force that is both arresting and subtle. The combination of meticulousness and sensuality is everywhere evident.

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Ivo ?anic

Flag on the Mountain

$59.95

Essential reading for anyone interested in the Balkan wars.

Cover image for Flag on the Mountain, isbn: 9780863568152

Fuad I Khuri

The Body In Islamic Culture

$55.00

Khuri's exploration of the concept of the body in Islamic and Arab societies, as a tool used to communicate attitudes, desires, doubts and intimacy, but also to define social discourse and mores, is insightful and mind provoking.

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Samir Khalaf

Sexuality in the Arab World

$49.95

Arab cultural discourse has been slow to respond to changing sexual behavior. The contributors to this collection pick up the slack, ranging across such disciplines as literature, history, sociology, and psychology.

Is Damascus the “chastity capital” of the Middle East? How do gay men cruise in Beirut? Are young women in Tunis pressured both to lose and gain weight?

The fresh, compelling research topics covered include masculinity and migration, colonialism and sexual health, and fantasy and violence.

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Robin Ostle

Writing The Self

$55.00

The subject of autobiography has been a dominant theme in literary theory and criticism in recent years. As a consequence, the parameters of what does or does not constitute autobiography in literature have been greatly extended. This volume presents the results of the latest research on this subject by leading experts on modern Arabic literature from Europe and the Arab world. As such, it questions the view that autobiography has not been central to the literary tradition of the Arabs, a view which seems to suggest that autobiography is the preserve of West European Renaissance Man or Woman and their descendants. The chapters cover a broad spectrum of autobiographical material and range in time from the seventeenth century to the present day. They include travelogues as a category of autobiographical writing, as well as a wide variety of the more traditional retrospective prose histories of the self. One of the Arab world’s leading novelists, Edwar al-Kharrat, gives a personal account of fiction and autobiography; and novels, drama and poetry are all considered within the book’s overall theme. Women writers and Palestinian authors are also given due consideration. Writing the Self is a provocative re-evaluation of the theory and practice of autobiography in modern Arabic literature and beyond.

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Maureen Ali

A Lost Summer

$14.95

Culled from a vast selection of personal messages and transformed into postcards, A Lost Summer reflects a range of reactions, from defiance and courage, confusion and anger, to humor and hope.

When I was 2 years old, until I was 5, the worst bombing took place. When my siblings were about the same age, the same acts took place. For a while I thought that war is like chicken pox: it happens to everyone at a certain age.
—Wadiaa Khoury

A Lost Summer was edited by Maureen Ali, designed by Anna Ogden Smith, and compiled by Lebanon United. Lebanon United can be contacted through www.lebunited.org.

Cover image for A Lost Summer, isbn: 9780863566868

Randa Habib

Hussein and Abdullah

$24.95

"In a part of the world in which journalism is a dangerous business, Randa Habib is courageous, considered, and influential. By being there to write the stories of Jordan and the region, she has shaped history as much as she has revealed it. In her profession, Randa Habib is a star."Paul McGeough, author of Kill Khalid

In January 1999, a newswire shocked Jordan. King Hussein announced that it was not his brother Hassan that would succeed him, but his son Abdullah. Less than a week later, King Hussein was dead.

During his forty-six-year reign, the Hashemite king preserved his kingdom against rising Islamism and maintained its neutrality in the face of the conflicting interests of neighboring countries. Hussein left his son a stable kingdom, allied to the West. Today, King Abdullah is following in his father’s footsteps, positioning himself as a peace broker alongside the United States in the hopes of ending the sixty-year Middle East conflict.

Award-winning journalist Randa Habib draws on twenty-five years of unparalleled access to the former king to share unique insights into Hussein’s relations with Saddam Hussein, Hafez al-Assad, and Itzhak Rabin. A lively chronicle of the end of an era, this is also a fascinating account of twenty-first-century Jordan, the Jordan of King Abdullah and Queen Rania.

Randa Habib has been director of the Amman bureau of Agence France Presse since 1987, and she has reported extensively from Iraq and other areas of conflict. Habib was the first journalist to interview King Abdullah when he ascended the throne.

Cover image for Hussein and Abdullah, isbn: 9780863566844

Mahmoud Khalil Saab

Stories & Scenes From Mount Lebanon

$39.95

At the outbreak of civil war in 1975 Mahmoud Khalil Saab realised that Lebanon would be changed forever. A man with a deep love for his country, he immediately set about recording eye-witness accounts of terrible events as they unfolded, as well as stories and anecdotes passed down from one generation to the next. Drawing upon historical documents and old folkloric tales of wrestling bears, sword sparring, and dancing goats, these stories convey not only the horrors of war, but also the rich social and religious diversity of a country whose legacy of generosity, courage and tolerance is rapidly being eroded by a climate of greed. Stories and Scenes is a moving testament to the pride and heritage of this ‘small beautiful country’.

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Faleh A. Jabar

The Kurds

$49.95

The Kurdish people have begun to establish themselves as a political force. Their situation illuminates the burning question of the Middle East: How do ethnicity and self-determination interact? Examples are drawn from the modern histories of Iraq, Turkey, and Iran.

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Hassan Massoudy

The Calligrapher's Garden

$24.95

“A feast for the eyes and balm for the soul.”—Télérama

Hassan Massoudy’s elegant calligraphy depicts the four seasons of the garden. From the icy palettes of winter to delicate spring growth, and from the dazzling sunshine and blooms of summer through the fading hues of autumn, he captures in calligraphy what countless poets have crafted with words.

The proverb or quotation that inspired each artwork is handwritten in Arabic by Massoudy alongside the English texts on the facing page.

Hassan Massoudy was born in Najaf, Iraq. He moved to France in 1969, where he studied at L’École des Beaux-Arts. His work has been exhibited throughout Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East.

Cover image for The Calligrapher's Garden, isbn: 9780863566196

Kamal Abu-Deeb

The Imagination Unbound

$60.00

The fantastic in literature is not a modern European invention; it is present in Arabic narrative dating from the ninth century.

The Imagination Unbound contains an Arabic and English study of al-Adab al-‘Aja‘ibi, with the original Arabic text of Kitab al-Azama (The Book of Greatness) and commentary by the author.

Kamel Abu-Deeb holds the chair in Arabic at the University of London. A poet and essayist, he has published many books and papers in both Arabic and English and has been co-editor of the avant-garde journal Mawaqif.

Cover image for The Imagination Unbound, isbn: 9780863566363

John Fine

The Bosnian Church

$49.95

John Fine’s major study of the history and workings of the medieval Bosnian Church and heresy is now back in print. This crucial work has far-reaching implications for those interested in reconstructing the Islamisation of early Ottoman Bosnia.

John Fine is a professor of Balkan and Byzantine history at the University of Michigan.

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Arnim Heinemann

The Middle East in the Media

$50.00

The Arab media landscape has undergone fundamental changes since the 1990s, which has affected how information and coverage are transferred.

While new information and communication technologies emerge, such as Arab satellite television and blogging, censorship is adapting to these new possibilities of communication, which in turn affects the media's message and resultant public opinion.

Arnim Heinemann is a researcher at the Orient-Institut Beirut.

Olfa Lamloum is a researcher at the Institut Français du Proche-Orient, Beirut.

Anne Françoise Weber is a program manager at the Beirut office of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation.

Cover image for The Middle East in the Media, isbn: 9780863566585

Salih J. Altoma

Modern Arabic Literature In Translation

$59.95

This indispensible guide to modern Arabic literature in English translation features not only a comprehensive bibliography but also chapters on fiction, drama, poetry, and autobiography, as well as a special chapter on Iraq's Arabic literature. By focusing on Najib Mahfuz, one of Arabic Literature's luminaries, and on poetry--a major, if not the major genre of the region-- Altoma assesses the progress made towards a wider reception of Arabic writing throughout the western world.

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Branka Maga?

Croatia Through History

$60.00

This comprehensive volume recounts Croatia’s development from the early Middle Ages to the present day. Branka Magaš observes that the ties that bound Croatia to other states for centuries have contributed to the state’s vitality, with a complex web of Slav, Croat, Dalmatian, Slavonian, Serb, Jewish, Italian, Yugoslav, and other identities emerging as apart of an ongoing social and political dialogue, which at times has included open strife.

Branka Magaš is a historian, journalist, and commentator on the former Yugoslavia. She co-founded the Croatian Peace Forum in 1991 and the Alliance to Defend Bosnia-Herzegovina in 1993.

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Jamal Sankari

Fadlallah

$42.50

This unique book traces the trajectory of the enigmatic, multi-faceted, sometimes contradictory personality of Sayyid Fadlallah against a background of cultural, political and economic upheaval in Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon.

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Abdulhadi H. Taher

Saudi Arabian Hydro-Carbons and World Affairs

$79.95

This timely investigation examines the energy problem on a global scale. It assesses the role of Saudi Arabian hydrocarbons in underpinning the industrialization of the kingdom's economy, and the economy at large, in light of recent events, which include the emergence of China and India as major economic and political players, the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and the current world financial crisis.

Abdulhadi H. Taher received his PhD in business administration from the University of California, Berkley, in 1964. He has worked in both the public and private sectors of the oil industry.

Michael Matthews has a BSc in economics from the London School of Economics.

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Barbara Drieskens

Cities of the South

$45.00

Major cities worldwide are caught in a whirlwind of change that is turning urban spaces into strategic sites where history is being rewritten. Migration, civil society, and an array of national and transnational players are transforming assumptions about citizenship in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America.

From the slums of Mumbai to the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, the new cities are altering the answers to one of mankind’s oldest questions: where do I belong?

Barbara Drieskens is a researcher at the Institut Français du Proche-Orient (IFPO), Beirut.

Franck Mermier is the director of contemporary studies at IFPO.

Heiko Wimmen is a program manager at the Heinrich Böll Foundation, Beirut.

Cover image for Cities of the South, isbn: 9780863566110

Stephen Schwartz

Sarajevo Rose

$30.00

Tracing the path of the Sephardic Jews to the Balkans – following their expulsion from Spain during the Inquisition – Schwartz draws on place names, historical chronicles, epitaphs, folk ballads, banned books, and the media. He examines both the travails and remarkable cultural achievements of these communities which, hundreds of years after the trauma of forced exile, were almost entirely destroyed in the Holocaust. The richness of the literature, poetry, mythology and craftsmanship that emerged from the Balkan Jewish milieu is explored, as well as the intermingling of Orthodox, Jewish, Catholic, and Muslim communities in the region. Highlights include commentaries on Sabbatai Zvi, who declared himself the Messiah in the seventeenth century and who reputedly chose conversion to Islam, and the ‘Renaissance Jewish Traveller’ Abraham Kohen Herrera, a convert under duress during the Inquisition, who later discovered his Jewish heritage through mysticism, and who may have been the model for Shylock in Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice. This is not only an historical analysis but also a personal journey. The author’s poignant descriptions of attempted pilgrimages to Jewish cemeteries and synagogues throughout the Balkans are testament to his yearning for historical pride and validation of identity.

Cover image for Sarajevo Rose, isbn: 9780863565922

Richard Temple

Icons: Divine Beauty

$55.00

Richard Temple’s lavishly illustrated book provides a concise but thorough tour through the ages, including famous works, as well as many rarely seen, making this a truly unique contribution to the field of art history and appreciation.

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Michael Karam

Arak and Mezze

$35.00

Arak and Mezze celebrates two of the Levant’s cherished traditions—the aniseed-flavored spirit that inspired the great eaux de vie of Europe, and the appetizers that have become a byword for all that is delicious and healthy in Lebanese food.

Michael Karam and Norbert Schiller explore the roots of arak making, its place in the history of alcohol distillation, its role in Lebanese society, and the way in which it has shaped the Lebanese rural tradition.

Michael Karam is Lebanon’s leading wine writer.

Norbert Schiller is a prolific Middle East news photographer. His work is featured regularly in The New York Times and Der Spiegel.

Cover image for Arak and Mezze, isbn: 9780863564765

Claude Boueiz Kanaan

Lebanon 1860-1960

$69.95

Insightful and extensively researched, Lebanon 1860-1960 explores the differing mythologies of the Maronite, Druze and Sunni communities that led to a brief but brutal clash in Lebanon in 1958.

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Afif Safieh

The Peace Process

$24.95

"Safieh presents an enthralling compilation that expresses his love for humanity through essays, articles, and lectures." - Publishers Weekly

"These brilliant essays are essential reading for all who would seek to bridge the divide between Palestinians and Israelis."Eugene Rogan

"Afif Safieh is that rare combination of scholar, diplomat and humanist. There is much to be learned from reading his worka compelling and principled call for examination and engagement."Sara Roy

Afif Safieh served as Palestinian General Delegate in London; Washington, DC; and Moscow from 1990 to 2009. During this time, he met and interacted with the leading figures of our age from Yasser Arafat, John Major, and Tony Blair to Jimmy Carter, George W. Bush, and Pope John Paul II.

The Peace Process: From Breakthrough to Breakdown brings together Safieh’s articles, lectures, and interviews spanning three decades, revealing the political and intellectual journey of one of Palestine’s most skilled and distinguished diplomats.

His writings center on the Palestinian struggle for independence and are a testament to his vision and humanity.

Born in Jerusalem in 1950, Afif Safieh is the roving ambassador for special missions for the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Fatah deputy commissioner for international relations. He served as head of mission in London; Washington, DC; and Moscow, as well as in the Holy See and the Netherlands.

Cover image for The Peace Process, isbn: 9780863564222

Naim Qassem

Hizbullah (Hezbollah)

$29.95

A unique insider’s view of one of the most important political parties in the Middle East. The mandate of Hizbullah (“Party of God”) is laid out here for the first time in English by a high-ranking insider.

Cover image for Hizbullah (Hezbollah), isbn: 9780863565175

J.E. Peterson

Oman's Insurgencies

$85.00

J.E. Peterson takes a detailed look at the crises that have tested the mettle of Oman’s army and accelerated its development, surveying its transition from a strictly traditional regime controlling only parts of the country to a modern, inclusive state, particularly in terms of security concerns.

J.E. Peterson is a political analyst specializing in the Arabian Peninsula and the Gulf. He is affiliated with the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at The University of Arizona in Tucson.

Cover image for Oman's Insurgencies, isbn: 9780863564567

Hassan Hamdan al-Alkim

Dynamics of Arab Foreign Policy-Making in the Twenty-First Century

$65.00

The Arab world's strategic location and considerable material and human potential should allow it to play a major role in world affairs. However, plagued by authoritarian regimes, ethnic and social cleavages, economic underdevelopment, and military weakness, these states depend on external support for security. Hassan Hamdan al-Alkim provides a wide-ranging analysis for understanding contemporary Arab politics and its role in world affairs.

Hassan Hamdan al-Alkim was born in the United Arab Emirates in 1958. He earned his PhD in political science from Exeter University, United Kingdom, and is professor of international relations at the United Arab Emirates University. His website is www.hhalkim.ae.

Cover image for Dynamics of Arab Foreign Policy-Making in the Twenty-First Century, isbn: 9780863564468

Ph.D. M E McMillan

The Meaning of Mecca

$37.95

The hajj, the fifth pillar of Islam, is a religious duty to be performed once in a lifetime by all Muslims who are able. The Prophet Muhammad set out the rituals of hajj when he led what became known as the Farewell Hajj in 10 AH (632 AD). This set the seal on Muhammad's career as the founder of a religion and the leader of a political entity based on that religion.

The convergence of the Prophet with the politician infuses the hajj with political, as well as religious, significance. For the caliphs who led the Islamic community after Muhammad's death, leadership of the hajj became a position of enormous political relevance as it presented them with an unrivaled opportunity to proclaim their pious credentials and reinforce their political legitimacy. This unique study analyzes information provided by contemporary sources about the leadership of the Hajj in Islam's formative period, between the seventh and tenth centuries, and assesses the pilgrimage from a political perspective.

A unique study because it collects and analyzes information provided by contemporary sources about the leadership of the Hajj in Islam's formative period, between the seventh and tenth centuries, and uses it to assess the pilgrimage from a political perspective.

Published in advance of a major British Museum exhibition, The Hajj: Journey to the Heart of Islam, opening in London in January 2012.

M.E. McMillan earned a PhD in Islamic history at the University of St Andrews, and has worked for the UN Security Council as a translator. The author lives in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Cover image for The Meaning of Mecca, isbn: 9780863564376

Kanan Makiya

Post-Islamic Classicism

$70.00

Metamorphosing “dead” Abbasid forms into living modern architecture lies at the roots of Mohamed Makiya’s classicism as an architect. This essay charts the stages of this metamorphosis from the Khulafa Mosque (1963) and the Kuwait State Mosque (one of the largest in the world) through to the vast and visionary schemes for Iraq of the late 1980s. Makijy’s formally complex and nuanced architecture, the author argues, is continuous, harmonious, and celebratory of an Islamic past. It is there too innocent, too romantic to be post-modern in its sensibility, nor does it assume the revolution in values that modernism brought in its wake. None the less, many of modernism’s discoveries about materials and space-making are deployed in an original way. The uneven combination between what is acquired from the modern, and mythologized about the past, is what makes Makiya’s architectural vision unique, so unlike that of any of his contemporaries. In the final analysis, the architecture’s dogged consistency in this regard is the source of its beauty.

Cover image for Post-Islamic Classicism, isbn: 9780863562952

Ibrahim Moussawi

Shi'ism and the Democratisation Process In Iran

$60.00

Can democracy and Islam cohere? Ibrahim Moussawi asserts that Wilayat al-Faqih, or rule by the jurisprudent, the theory upon which the Islamic Republic was constructed, upholds both individual and communal rights, and provides scope for citizens to express their interests. Moussawi argues that in today's Iran, politics and religion are neither rigid nor diametrically opposed.

Ibrahim Moussawi is head of media relations for Hizbullah in Lebanon, and the editor of the party's newspaper al-Intiqad. He has an MA in political science and a doctorate in philosophy of Islamic studies. He frequently appears as a political analyst and commentator on CNN and Sky News.

Cover image for Shi'ism and the Democratisation Process In Iran, isbn: 9780863564703

Chant Avedissian

$19.95

In his colorful stenciled images, Chant Avedissian deftly explores the boundaries between “high” and “low” art, politics and pop, the ephemeral and the enduring, and Egypt and the world. Avedissian refined his techniques in Western art schools, but he draws inspiration from Egypt's modern Golden Age, with its glamorous divas and mustachioed movie stars.

Cover image for Chant Avedissian, isbn: 9780863560804

Marwan Iskandar

Rafiq Hariri and the Fate of Lebanon

$24.95

“The best book so far on Hariri and his legacy.”—Robert Fisk

“Essential reading.”—Fuad Siniora, prime minister of Lebanon

On Valentine’s Day 2005, self-made billionaire Rafiq Hariri, Lebanon’s former prime minister, was assassinated in Beirut by a massive bomb that destroyed his motorcade. The Lebanese people subsequently took to the streets, and the United Nations Security Council responded by declaring the assassination an international terrorist act with severe regional and international ramifications. An International Independent Investigation Commission was formed by the Security Council to uncover the perpetrators. Hariri was mourned as a Lebanese martyr, and his death triggered the protests that led to the withdrawal of Syrian forces in April of 2005.

From his humble beginnings as a fruit picker, Hariri achieved fame and fortune as a construction magnate in Saudi Arabia. As prime minister of Lebanon for ten years (1992–1998 and 2000–2004) he was widely credited for its rebirth after years of civil war, overseeing the rebuilding of 90 percent of the country’s infrastructure. His resignation in 2004 over the extension of President Lahoud’s mandate was viewed as a protest against Syrian interference in Lebanese affairs.

Marwan Iskandar offers an in-depth perspective of the Hariri years, including a detailed look at the considerable economic reforms instituted under Hariri’s leadership.

Cover image for Rafiq Hariri and the Fate of Lebanon, isbn: 9780863563706

Sabry Hafez

The Quest for Identities

$50.00

This long-awaited sequel to the classic Genesis of Arabic Narrative Discourse investigates a number of crucial questions related to the genre’s development. For example, can the study of this genre provide us with wider insights into the culture as a whole? And how have writers in one Arab country influenced those in others?

These are just some of the issues addressed through close reading of authors such as Yusuf Idris, ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Sharqawi, and Edwar al-Kharrat, among others.

Sabry Hafez is a professor of modern Arabic and comparative literature at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.

Cover image for The Quest for Identities, isbn: 9780863563638

Godfrey Goodwin

Sinan: Ottoman Architecture And Its Values Today

$60.00

In this major contribution to an understanding of the development of Ottoman architecture, Godfrey Goodwin focuses on the work of one of the greatest 16th-century architects, Sinan Abdulmennan, showing how he revolutionized inherited Ottoman building methods—a tradition based on structure—by an awareness of the psychology of space.

Until Sinan, Ottoman architecture had been a reading of parts. He broke down the distinct forms that had created a certain rigidity, thus freeing interior space and interior form simultaneously.

Underlying his architectural concepts are the mathematical theories and practices of classical Greece. Sinan shared these ideals of proportion and balance with builders in the West—indeed, the author argues that the work of Sinan and that of Bramante and Palladio must be seen as part of the same intellectual revolution.

This is not a life of Sinan—very few biographical materials are available. Goodwin nevertheless shows the importance of the architect’s long years in the army and his experience of bridges, siege-works, fortifications, and the behaviour of stone and masonry before he was appointed Royal Architect in 1538.

Goodwin bases his analysis on a detailed comparative study of certain of Sinan’s buildings, the supreme example being the imaginative leap represented by the mosque of Selim II at Edirne, second capital of the Ottoman empire.

Included are chapters on light and space; the dome, the minaret and the apsidal form; decoration and tiles.

The text is illustrate dby photographs, plans and evaluations of many of Sinan’s works ranging from the grandiose Süleymaniye complex in Istanbul to the experimental Kılıç Ali Pasha mosque. Of outstanding interest are the plates by the 19th-century German architect Gurlitt, many of which show features before later restoration.

Cover image for Sinan: Ottoman Architecture And Its Values Today, isbn: 9780863561726

Vanessa Hodgkinson

The Birds' Journey to Mount Qaf

$29.95

Based on the masterful twelfth-century Sufi poem “The Conference of the Birds,” this enchanting poem is accompanied by original illustrations painted on ceramic tiles, typical of the medieval Persian style.

It was one night while soaring in the Chinese sky,
I heard people talk of a great bird that flew by,
Called Simurgh, the greatest bird alive,
Who dwells on Mount Qaf, where he is said to thrive,
Upon a giant mountain unlike any other seen, covered with trees,
Beyond Samarkand, across seven valleys and seven seas.

Hooda Shawa Qaddumi teaches English as a Second Language at Kuwait University.

Vanessa Hodgkinson is the Levy-Plumb Artist in Residence at Christ’s College, Cambridge.

Cover image for The Birds' Journey to Mount Qaf, isbn: 9780863564437

Shirley Gurthrie

Arab Social Life in the Middle Ages

$70.00

Guthrie's vivid portrait of everyday life in the medieval Arab world draws on thirteenth-century miniatures from collections as far a field as St Petersburg and Istanbul. An essential read for Arabs and non-Arabs alike.

Cover image for Arab Social Life in the Middle Ages, isbn: 9780863560439

Godfrey Goodwin

The Sultan's Seraglio

$45.00

From 1604 to 1607 Ottavio Bon was the Venetian representative in Istanbul, where he recorded every aspect of life at the Topkapı palace.

His The Sultan’s Seraglio provides a fascinating and lively account of the period of Ahmet I, covering topics as diverse as life in the harem; the exchange of gifts between Turkish and Western dignitaries; the menu at official state banquets; the buying of slaves in the weekly slave market; and the great religious festivals and circumcision ceremonies.

The various Ottoman officials are all introduced to us, including the viziers, the aghas and the ‘itchoglans’ (Christian recruits), with their long years of harsh training until the best of them were admitted into the sultan’s personal service. We meet the buffoons and mutes who were the sultan’s constant companions and accompanied him on boat trips down the Bosphorus to his palaces and pleasure gardens.

The book is of particular value not only as the best and most reliable of the contemporary accounts, but also because it is not romanticized or ‘orientalist’. The author observes with a detached eye, at times comparing Turkish customs with Western ones, but always concerned to leave an objective picture.

This is not simply a facsimile edition, although it preserves all the charm of the original. It has been annotated throughout by Godfrey Goodwin, the leading historian of the Ottoman period.

Cover image for The Sultan's Seraglio, isbn: 9780863562150

May Telmissany

Dunyazad

$22.50

This story of a woman who suffers one of life's great tragedies, the loss of her child is also a portrait of a country, Egypt, whose citizens find themselves caught in a never-ending spiral of change and aspirations.

Cover image for Dunyazad, isbn: 9780863563409

Sana al-Khayyat

Honour And Shame

$55.00

A testimony to the world of Iraqi women. Ranging from executives to illiterate housewives, the women speak with frankness of sex and marriage, physical and mental violence, the fear of scandal and their indoctrination into the ideology of honour and shame. On the basis of an in-depth study conducted over several years, the author builds a picture of Iraqi women's lives from birth to old age. Although the book's main focus is on Iraq, there are cross-cultural comparisons between Third World women and women in Western societies.

Cover image for Honour And Shame, isbn: 9780863560941

Dr. Hassan Hamdan al-Alkim

The GCC States In An Unstable World

$70.00

Al-Alkim examines the actors shaping the foreign-policy dynamics of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states and argues that, since the 1991-92 Gulf war, the GCC has become heavily dependent on foreign powers for its survival.

Cover image for The GCC States In An Unstable World, isbn: 9780863560743

Sabry Hafez

The Genesis Of Arabic Narrative Discourse

$60.00

After formulating a theoretical foundation for the sociology of narrative genres based on the work of Bakhtin, Foucault, Goldmann, Jauss and Said, this work challenges the widely held assumption that Arabic culture stagnated before its contact with the West at the beginning of the nineteenth century. Hafez traces the revival to the mid-eighteenth century and follows its development throughout the Arab world, showing how the emergence of a new reading public with its distinct ‘world view’ induced the process of the transformation and genesis of a new literary discourse. This is followed by a study of the dynamics of this process and an outline of the various stages of the formation and transformation of the new narrative discourse until it culminates in the production of a sophisticated and mature narrative.

The Genesis of Arabic Narrative Discourse shifts the terms of the debate on the rise of narrative from formal analysis to an analysis of social formation, clarifying many of the issues which have long dogged critical discussion. It changes the nature of literary history by overlaying its dry chronology with the vivid socio-cultural dimension and by achieving a fine balance between the textual and contextual. It tests its major theoretical suppositions by tracing the historical development of narrative discourse, as well as through a detailed and sensitive analysis of a short story in a manner that changes the nature of Arabic literary criticism and puts it on an equal footing with modern critical discourse in Western culture.

Cover image for The Genesis Of Arabic Narrative Discourse, isbn: 9780863561498

Sally Mustoe

Turkish Cookery

$34.95

This is no ordinary cookbook. Some of the world’s great chefs have come together here to share their favorite Turkish recipes. Sample Nigella Lawson’s hummus with seared lamb and toasted pinenuts, Hüseyin Özer’s almond cake, Antony Worrall-Thompson’s freshwater trout, Claudia Roden’s yogurt soup, or Gary Rhodes’ Turkish delights.

Not only are there classic Turkish recipes for falafel, kebabs, and baklava, but there are also wonderful introductions to the famous wines, raki, and coffee that complement these dishes, from a cuisine that has been refined since ancient times.

Contributors include Nevin Halici, Ainsley Harriott, Nico Ladenis, Nigella Lawson, Anton Mosimann, Hüseyin Özer, Gary Rhodes, Claudia Roden, and Antony Worrall-Thompson. Experts on regional cuisine like Osman Serim, Mehmet Yalçin, and Sami Zubaida offer much food for thought as well, lending insight into various -aspects of Turkish cuisine.

Cover image for Turkish Cookery, isbn: 9780863560729

Hazim Saghie

The Predicament of the Individual in the Middle East

$55.00

As a result of the collapse of totalitarian and semi-totalitarian ideologies worldwide, democratic values appear to be gaining influence in Arab political discourse. Nevertheless, an essential component remains absent: the notion of individualism. Stifled by religion and the tribal systems so common to the region on the one hand, and by modern militant tendencies on the other, the Arab self has been virtually obliterated, either as a project or as a material existence. This is the first study of individualism – or the lack of it – in the Arab Middle East. It is a critical reading of historical developments since the late eighteenth century, from the viewpoint of Europe’s impact on the area, and a cultural commentary on the manifestations of a nascent sense of self, noticeable in the fields of poetry, the plastic arts, film and certain aspects of everyday life. The essays by both Arab and non-Arab scholars and writers explore Islam, the Mohammad Ali era in Egypt, the Arab-Israeli conflict, the Gulf, the Mashreq-Maghreb dialogue and Lebanon’s modern experience; they all share a common concern: without a strong sense of individualism, no real progress can be made towards democracy and the rule of law in the Middle East.

Cover image for The Predicament of the Individual in the Middle East, isbn: 9780863560538

Helen Lackner

Yemen in Crisis

$24.95

Yemen is in the grip of its most severe crisis in years. Fuelled by Arab and Western intervention, the civil war has quickly escalated, resulting in thousands killed and millions close to starvation. Suffering from a collapsed economy, the people of Yemen face a desperate choice between the Huthi rebels allied with ex-President Saleh on the one side and the internationally recognised government propped up by the Saudi-led coalition and Western arms on the other.

The struggle for power in the Arab world’s poorest but strategically vital nation has serious implications for the region and beyond. While Saudi Arabia and its allies fear that a Huthi takeover would threaten free passage of oil through the Bab al-Mandab Strait, Western governments fear an increase of attacks from al-Qa‘ida in the absence of effective governance.

In this invaluable analysis, Helen Lackner uncovers the roots of the social and political conflicts that threaten the very survival of the state and its people. She reveals the corruption of the country’s US-backed autocratic regime, as well as its failure to address national impoverishment and to plan an equitable economy for Yemen’s growing population.

Cover image for Yemen in Crisis, isbn: 9780863561931

Godfrey Goodwin

Topkapi Palace

$29.50

This guide to the palace of the Ottoman sultans in Istanbul takes the reader through all the rooms and gardens which are open to the public – and some that are not. It records the changes that the buildings have suffered through fire, earthquakes and the endless fight for space. Treasures, kaftans and furnishings are discussed as is food and drink.

We pass through the Middle Gate and leave the horses neighing behind us. We then enter the courts of the sultan, visiting his Harem, his Throne Room or the private gardens and kiosks of his secret world.

But above all, the book is about the thousands who lived in the saray and what they did and feared and saw, whether they were viziers, students or women. It is hoped that this will lead to a deeper understanding of this core of Ottoman life and that readers will meet the ghosts of the humblest and the grandest of the multiture: and, not least, that they will imagine the intense silence of the inner courts broken by the caged songbirds and the cry of the peacock.

Cover image for Topkapi Palace, isbn: 9780863560675

Yousef Khalifa Al-Yousef

The Gulf Cooperation Council States

$60.00

Since the oil boom of the 1970s, the Gulf Cooperation Council States have attempted to achieve economic stability and realize their development goals. Such efforts have so far been in vain, however, as the states' autocratic governments have closed off their political systems with the support of international allies, especially the United States.

In this timely and comprehensive analysis of the political economies of the GCC since the 1970s to the present, Yousef Khalifa Al-Yousef examines the factors responsible for the failure of the states to achieve lasting change in development and security. Focusing on institutional structures where oil wealth has been confined to the few, and the consequences of failed legitimacy at home that has led to dependence on foreign powers, Al-Yousef charts the consistent disparities between governance and the needs of the local population, to the detriment of genuine development.

Cover image for The Gulf Cooperation Council States, isbn: 9780863561474

Hamid Keshmirshekan

Contemporary Iranian Art

$69.95

Renowned art historian Hamid Keshmirshekan explores contemporary art in Iran and considers the relationship between its cultural past, modernism, and the issue of contemporaneity with regard to cultural specificity.

Using over three hundred color illustrations, Keshmirshekan contends that the twentieth century is a crucial period in the culture and art of Iranwhen the legacies of tradition and modernism were being critically reviewed and the artistic concerns were indivisible from ideological ones.

Hamid Keshmirshekan is an art historian, critic, visiting fellow at the faculty of Oriental Studies at the University of Oxford, and editor-in-chief of the bilingual quarterly Art Tomorrow.

Cover image for Contemporary Iranian Art, isbn: 9780863567216

Hamid Keshmirshekan

Koorosh Shishegaran

$69.95

Born in Qazvin, Iran, in 1944, Koorosh Shishegaran is considered one of the most expressive and emotive artists of the contemporary Iranian art movement.

In a career spanning six decades, he has established himself as an artist of great discipline, social awareness and manual skill, working in a wide array of different media, from graphic design to painting, photography and furniture design.

Drawing inspiration from Iranian visual culture, Shishegaran is best known for his scribble line abstract paintings (Khat-khatis). These dynamic colourful lines, depicting the contemporary human condition, enabled the artist to find a style and language expressive of the modern era.

With contributions from leading experts in the field and featuring over 300 colour plates, Koorosh Shishegaran: The Art of Altruism brings together the life and works of the artist for the first time, showcasing his various artistic phases and outlining his progressive approach to art-making and distribution.

About Koorosh Shishegaran

Koorosh Shishegaran (b. 1944) received a BA in Interior Design from the Tehran Faculty of Decorative Arts in 1973. He has since participated widely in solo and group exhibitions around the world, including Art Dubai (2015); Shirin Gallery, Tehran (2015); Unedited History. Iran 1960–2014, at MAXXI, Rome (2015) and Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris (2014); Opera Gallery, London (2012); Beijing Biennial (2003); Barbican Centre, London (2001); Meridian Center exhibitions in the United States (2001–03).

Cover image for Koorosh Shishegaran, isbn: 9780863561986

Alison Pargeter

Return to the Shadows

$24.95

“This book addresses one of the great conundrums of the Arab Awakening: the failure of moderate political Islam. A highly timely analysis ... it offers an excellent insight into one of the most acute crises that faces the Islamic world today.”—George Joffé, University of Cambridge

“Alison Pargeter's outstanding book offers a devastating portrait of Muslim Brotherhood groups in Egypt, Tunisia, and Libya. Combining strong reporting with level-headed analysis, Return to the Shadows is a must-read account for policymakers and academics alike.”—Eric Trager, Esther K. Wagner Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy

“Over the last five years the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Libya and Tunisia has undergone dramatic vicissitudes that will shape the future of political Islam. Alison Pargeter retraces these developments with a masterful analysis enriched by access to excellent primary sources.”—Lorenzo Vidino, Director of the Program on Extremism, George Washington University

The Arab Spring heralded a profound shift in the Middle East, bringing to power Islamist movements which had previously been operating in the shadows. The Muslim Brotherhood stormed to victory in Egypt and emerged as a key player in Libya’s nascent political arena. Meanwhile, An-Nahda found itself catapulted into power as the head of Tunisia’s coalition government. For a while, it looked as though the region was entering the dawn of a new Islamist age.

But navigating their respective countries through difficult and painful transitions ultimately proved too challenging for these forces, and, just as suddenly, the Brotherhood was dramatically overthrown in Egypt and left severely weakened in Libya. In Tunisia, An-Nahda managed to pull itself through the crisis, but its failure to articulate and deliver the hopes and aspirations of a large section of Tunisian society damaged its credibility.

In this authoritative account, Alison Pargeter expertly charts the Islamists’ ascent and subsequent fall from power. Based on extensive research and interviews with high ranking members of the Brotherhood and An-Nahda, Pargeter offers a comparative analysis of the movement in North Africa since the Arab Spring, and outlines the consequences of the Brotherhood’s decline on both the region and the wider Islamist political project.

Alison Pargeter is an analyst specialising in the Middle East and North Africa. She has held academic positions at the University of Cambridge and King's College, London, and is now a Senior Research Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies (RUSI). Her previous publications include The Muslim Brotherhood: From Opposition to Power, The New Frontiers of Jihad: Radical Islam in Europe, and Libya: The Rise and Fall of Gaddafi.