"Latiff is to be commended for his command of an expansive corpus and the ease with which he analyzes its contents and themes, relating both to the broader narrative of the anti-Frankish jihad. One of the main strengths of the work is the vast quantity of poetry that is translated and dispersed throughout the eight chapters; there is also an appendix that provides critical editions of many of these poems. The Cutting Edge of the Poet’s Sword cogently makes the case for the necessity of reading Arabic poetry not merely as a cultural artifact but as a vital part of the historiographical context, shaped by and shaping the events to which it responded... [The book] is essential reading for anyone interested in Muslim responses to the Crusades and suggests a number of fruitful avenues for future research..." - Kenneth A. Goudie, Ghent University, in: Speculum 91/1 (January 2020)

"Overall, this book makes a substantial contribution to existing studies in this area. It provides a great deal of new material for scholars interested in recreating the events and mentalities of the period. In some cases, it expands upon existing knowledge, contributing to longstanding questions, while in others it challenges orthodoxies; in many more cases, it opens up new conversations, establishing fruitful lines of research." - Nicholas Morton, Nottingham Trent University, in: Al-Masāq 30/2 (2018)

Osman Latiff, Ph.D. (2011), Royal Holloway, University of London, is a researcher in medieval and crusader history. He also writes on international relations, having completed a Post-doctorate study on counter-hegemony and political syncretism in Arab-U.S relations (2015) and is currently authoring a book on the place of empathy in challenging attitudes of ‘otherness’ in conflict