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The Other Islam: Sufism and the Road to Global Harmony
Let's be upbeat: this book, released last month, doesn't totally stink. The author's personal politics might lead one to expect the worst, but neoconservative Stephen Schwartz does manage in his book to provide both interesting information and genuine thoughtfulness about religious faith and Sufi Islam. This is salutary because his likely readership will mostly be those who take seriously all kinds of simplistic tripe about Muslims. Or, still worse, lap up the manurish anti-Muslim bigotry that is pervasive in the general society and in certain political blogs (e.g. the sicko Little Green Footballs blog, etc.)
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Posted by Matthew Hogan at 02:17 AM | Comments (16) | TrackBack
Crush the Cell: How to Defeat Terrorism Without Terrorizing Ourselves
Simply put: this is a damn good book about fighting al-Qaeda, especially when one considers it was written by a member of the US counterintelligence establishment. It has shortcomings especially if one is, as I am, disturbed by some of the author's proposed counterterrorism solutions (more "random" searches, wiretaps,etc.). Still, there is a gem of informed and corrective common sense on just about every other page. (An update to this review may address many of those.)
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Posted by Matthew Hogan at 11:28 PM | Comments (17) | TrackBack
Infidel
Well, here it is. After much haranguing by Matthew and Lounsbury, everyone finally gets to hear what I think about Ayaan Hirsi Ali's memoir, Infidel. When I started the book this past summer, I forced myself to read it with an open mind (as opposed to the snarky cynicism I've applied in the past). However, this mindset was soon abandoned once it became clear that it was simply an elaborate attempt to win sympathy and establish a personal brand. For non-critical readers, such as the dimwit at NYT who called her book "brave, inspiring and beautifully written," Hirsi Ali emerges as an embattled, courageous soul who escaped the benighted world of Islam and found sanctuary in the enlightened West.
The truth is of course more mundane.
Posted by eerie at 08:46 AM | Comments (47) | TrackBack
Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People
The bottom line, up front: Jack Shaheen's Reel Bad Arabs is a necessary resource for anyone seriously interested in the subject of negative stereotyping of Arabs in American cinema. The best supplement to this book, by the way, besides its recently released DVD companion piece, is the same author's The TV Arab. That work provides a sustained analysis and background regarding Arab stereotyping on the small screen. On the downside, however, both are a bit dated (I am using the original 2001 edition of Reel Bad Arabs) and perhaps dangerously so at times. More about that in a bit.
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Posted by Matthew Hogan at 12:47 AM | Comments (11) | TrackBack
Islam, Politics and Pluralism: Theory and Practice in Turkey, Jordan, Tunisia and Algeria
Very well done almost pamphlet-sized volume that very concisely describes the rise of Islamism in MENA in general, the trajectory of Islamist movements in the countries listed, and their interplay with notions of electoral politics and movement towards representative democracy in the same. Ultimately she makes a compelling (if not airtight) argument that perhaps the best way to moderate Islamist movements (and the only way to move forwards towards true democracy in the region) is to include them within the democratic framework, as Turkey has successively done.
Posted by raf* at 07:57 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
Faith At War
Well over a year after the book's first release, one paragraph alone validates the continuing worth of Yaroslav Trofimov's Faith At War. Although buried in chapter 12, among seemingly more telling fare, had a few planners in high positions in several countries took it seriously last year, a lot of embarrassing reckless victory promises and glibly proclaimed regional "pangs" would not have issued forth:
True to is reputation, Hezbollah proved the most efficient organization I have come across in the Middle East...[Each] interview would happen exactly as planned. In my dealings with the U.S. military, I never saw such precision.
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Posted by Matthew Hogan at 10:56 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
The Selected Writings of Eqbal Ahmad
Although Eqbal Ahmad's work spans a huge array of questions and countries, the theme of North-South, decolonization and its brutal legacies, runs throughout this long collection of his essays. Ahmad's close relationship with a host of revolutionary/national liberation movements allowed him to reframe the major problems of the post-WWII era in terms decolonization, national liberation struggles, and counterinsurgency, rather than the bipolar-world, superpower-based framework that characterized much Cold War thinking.
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Posted by homais at 04:29 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Oil Monarchies
Gregory Gause is one of the best scholars of the Gulf, and this book is a good example of why.
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Posted by dubaiwalla at 10:56 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Syriana
Syriana is finally out on DVD. We've reviewed this film previously here and here.
Posted by eerie at 04:46 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Unspeakable Love
Whitaker is a journalist and it shows in this survey of homosexuality in the middle east. When he has people's stories to tell, and interviews to play with, whether his own or second-hand reporting from OutUK on the underground gay scene in Saudi Arabia, the prose shines and the story flies. But the last two hundred pages, where he gets down to cultural, legal and religious arguments, slow down considerably.
The first two chapters, "A Question of Honour" and "In Search of a Rainbow" introduce the situation of gays and lesbians in the Middle East, by following the stories of a dozen or so people from different countries and backgrounds. There are three countries surveyed: Lebanon, an almost-open society where homosexuality is still against the law but those laws are rarely enforced, but where a more conservative society is a much bigger constraint on most peoples' activities; Egypt, where a thriving underground gay scene was broken up by a national government looking to score points with the pious; and Saudi Arabia, where despite homosexuality being officially punishable by death, the gay scene is much healthier than Egypt. In Saudi, in particular, the near-total public segregation of the sexes and widespread acceptance of homosociality has made life in some ways easier for gays than straights - provided they keep it discrete.
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Posted by tomscud at 12:29 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Don't They Know It's Friday?
Don't they know it's Friday is a very amusing and informative guide to doing business in the Gulf, from the selection of suitable candidates to run a Middle East office, to the business and cultural mores they will find there. It is written by Jeremy Williams OBE, a former Defence attache in the British embassies in Abu Dhabi and Bahrain, who continues to visit the region on a frequent basis.
The importance of Islam, business behaviour and entertaining and hospitality are among the key topics. Anyone who has not been to the Gulf but plans to make a business trip, even a short one, would do well to read this book.
Posted by secretdubai at 08:03 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Discovering Islam; Making Sense of Muslim History and Society
Commentary on history and particularly interactions with the West, written from a somewhat more personal style than Lapidus or Hodgson, with perhaps a trend towards apologia. You'll either like that take or not - personally, I'm less crazy about it. However I think he offers some valuable perspectives, particularly on the colonial impact and this is a decent second or third volume to pick up.
Posted by Tamerlane at 07:51 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Colonising Egypt
One of the (now) classic studies that uses deconstruction theory to examine how colonization affected all aspects of society, and argues that the physical effects are not the most important ones. E-book version available here.
Posted by Tamerlane at 07:36 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Rediscovering Palestine: Merchants and Peasants in Jabal Nablus, 1700-1900
One of the first microhistory studies in the MENA region. Shows brilliantly how smartly the "natives" adapted to their region's integration into the World Economy. E-book version available here.
Posted by raf* at 07:26 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
The Imperial Harem : Women and Sovereignty in the Ottoman Empire
One of the books that put an end to all the rubbish about "weak Sultans & strong mothers". This one is readable.
Posted by raf* at 07:15 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
An Economic and Social History of the Ottoman Empire
For "advanced" students of the Middle East, this dense two-volume collection is perfect for background reading and reference. Should not be opened by beginners - the danger of turning them off the region is simply too great.
Posted by raf* at 07:01 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Making Big Money in 1600: The Life and Times of Isma'Il Abu Taqiyya, Egyptian Merchant
A whimsical choice, but it is an interesting examination of pre-modern social history from an individual point of view as well as an interesting insight into the changing economic scene of the period, with the rise of nascent capitalism.
Posted by Tamerlane at 06:48 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
