The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot

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nice effort, unfortunately dull

It actually has nothing to do with 'mysteries' of Judas

Judas the Ensnared

The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot

Lacks Impact

The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot
Jeffrey Archer , and Francis J. Moloney
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0312375204
Release Date: 2007-03-20

Book Description

The very name of Judas raises among Christians an instinctive reaction of criticism and condemnationThe betrayal of Judas remainsa mystery. Pope Benedict XVI, October 2006 The Gospel According to Judas, by Benjamin Iscariot sheds new light on the the mystery of Judasincluding his motives for the betrayal and what happened to him after the crucifixionby retelling the story of Jesus through the eyes of Judas, using the canonical texts as its basic point of reference. Ostensibly written by Judass son, Benjamin, and following the narrative style of the Gospels, this re-creation is provocative, compelling, and controversial. The Gospel According to Judas, by Benjamin Iscariot is the result of an intense collaboration between a storyteller and a scholar: Jeffrey Archer and Francis J. Moloney. Their brilliant workbold and simpleis a compelling story for twenty-first-century readers, while maintaining an authenticity that would be credible to a first-century Christian or Jew.

Customer Reviews:

nice effort, unfortunately dull.......2007-09-25

I was waiting for something interesting to happen, some insight... I didn't really come across anything new.

Overall, a bit disappointing, luckily not a big book.

For much more illuminating Biblical historical fiction, I highly recommend the Kingdom & the Crown Series by Gerald Lund (3 books) and the Women of Genesis books by Orson Scott Card.

It actually has nothing to do with 'mysteries' of Judas.......2007-07-06

Oh come on people:
"The unlikely partnership of Jeffrey Archer and Francis J. Moloney was formed after Archer had sought advice from Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini on who should guide him through this demanding project. Among his many past students of the Pontifical Biblical Institute, Cardinal Martini singled
out Professor Moloney, a graduate of that institute in 1972, who had completed his doctoral studies at Oxford University in 1975.
The project was as bold as it was simple: Archer would write a story for twenty-first-century readers, while Moloney would ensure that the result would be credible to a first-century Christian or Jew."

And that's EXACTLY the case. An interesting read.

Judas the Ensnared.......2007-06-28

I've been reading Archer since Kane and Abel and when I saw that he was writing a fictionalized account of the life of Judas as told by his son, I thought, wow, this could really be a great read and a little controversial. Neither came true. Basically, it's formatted like the gospels (nothing wrong with that), but just not an exciting read this time around. I was actually kind of bored reading it and the only reason I kept going was because it came in at around ninety pages so I persevered with it. The last chapter or two is when the basis of the story comes out and nothing earth shattering here. Judas was the victim of the religious zealots at the time to get rid of Christ. Maybe, maybe not. Does it change my point of view or my beliefs, probably not. Just something more to ponder about; the Bible, its writers (Did they embellish the truth from generation to generation before writing it down, whether on purpose or by accident. Kind of difficult to keep the same exact story going for tens or even hundreds of years orally without some of it being changed on the next telling), and the facts that surround it that science today continues to try to prove happened. I expected Archer to put this into more story form like all his other works and I think then he could have gone into more depth with this alternate theory and really provoked the reader's imagination. But he chose not to, giving us instead this lackluster rendition of what could have been a great story about Judas Iscariot.

The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot.......2007-06-21

The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot
Where Do I begin. Lets start with the title, The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot by Jeffrey Archer, come on!! It should be the fictional story of The Gospel According to Judas by Jeffrey Archer as Benjamin Iscariot.
A Relevant Story:
A friend of mine recently told me of a Pastor who liked to make hot fudge, apparently he used all organic ingredients. One day the Pastor's daughter wanted to see PG parental guidance rated movie, that only had 5%, swearing/drug use or sex scenes. After much insistence the daughter when to see the movie, the next day the Pastor decided to make some hot chocolate fudge the aroma filled the house the Pastor stated that he'd used 5% of a special organic source and kept the matter a secret until all the fudge had been consumed. Then he asked did you notice any difference in the quality/flavour? No.. they replied, well the 5% special ingredient was organic it wont do any REAL harm, it was only dog p##h. lol
If you take a solid truth as the Life, Death and Resurrection of Jesus and you contaminant 5% to 10% of it with a special 'organic substance' what do you have in the end - dog p##h. I felt the tone and reason for the book was a Jewish backlash hardliner trying to have some justification why Jesus wasn't who he said he was the Son of God. The book was written from the sour grapes attitude, "[Jesus wasn't] ...the long-awaited Messiah."p1, on the betrayal of Christ, Archer says, "...Judas knew that he was innocent of such an accusation, as his only purpose was to save Jesus from an unnecessary death." After Jesus' Death, the sorrowful Judas goes a lives amongst the Essenes then a Masada as a "marked man". And the book concludes with "Judas died as Jesus did. He was crucified by the Romans." It's all a bit desperate!
The whole story Gospel of Judas is unbalanced what about Isaiah 53 The Sin-bearing, Suffering Servant? The Gospel of Judas omits the 30 pieces of silver, and suicide of Judas. The Gospel of Judas is nothing more that fragments of quotation out of context in Holy Bible blended together (very poorly) it just doesn't stick!
Let us set aside a few things, just say by chance that this gospel of Judas was right, and the whole of the New Testament wrong. Ok we've been deceived by the BIGGEST hoaxes since man made fire. We could be waiting for the Messiah to still come as the Gospel of Judas indicated, unhappily Israel still waits, they missed the boat. Not one Holy Prophet has been around for over two thousand years.
Israel is one of the most violent, sad and godless places on earth. There is no peace, the temple has gone, the glory has gone, as a nation they forsook the Lord time and time again and were taken off to captivity. Jesus said in Matt 23:37 "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city the kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See your house is left to you, desolate..."
Now let's just say that the Gospel of Judas is false piece of fiction. Look at the people in New Testament who believe and were change by it and gave their lives for it (Peter & Paul), they did not write empty words by words of someone who knew and walked and talked with Jesus. The story of people in Bible give us hope, in a world where we are saturated with Hollywood, sexism, drugs and alcohol, domestic violence (rape/guns) the list keeps on going on. I want freedom from all that this world offers because it like hot sweet chocolate fudge one isn't enough and one piece is too much.
In closing a quote from James 3:13, "Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish.
What was Archer really trying to achieve by the release of this book?

Lacks Impact.......2007-05-28

In spite of the clever packaging---this small 100+ page novel appears to be an ancient leather-bound journal complete with built in ribbon bookmark--- Jeffrey Archer's "The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot" fails to deliver the punch needed to smack it into the significance realm of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

I expected some grand revelation---perhaps Judas and Jesus had concocted the whole betrayal bit; Judas gladly takes the hit and for two millennia is thought to be the ultimate 30 pieces of silver traitor. As I read this little gospel formatted tome, I am thinking, Judas's legendary despicable actions were all part of his Master's ultimate plan, right?

Wrong.

Supposedly, in "The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot" Archer and Moloney collaborate to formulate a tale believable to both Biblical scholars and modern laymen readers. The format definitely bespeaks of their desire to create something that resembles a gospel rendering complete with chapter and verse and the Jesus quotations (most of which are familiar from evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) highlighted in a red italicized font. Nevertheless, the story itself disappoints as it is far too similar to the actual gospels from which it is based to excite any degree of controversy. The supposed mystery of the real Judas simply neglects to properly mystify.

Bottom line? Years ago, I had read Frank Yerby's novel, "Judas, My Brother." Believe me as scandalous as the plotline of this older book seemed to me then, it could far more captivate its audience now than this Archer-Moloney collaboration. Sadly, "The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot" attempts to retell the story of Christ's ministry utilizing a fifth evangelist format that simply doesn't work. Why read this when the original four authors of the New Testament gospels have already told the tale and have told it the best way possible? Not recommended.
Diana Faillace Von Behren
"reneofc"

Sailing from Byzantium: How a Lost Empire Shaped the World

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Entertaining biographical sketches that shaped the world after 1453
Tremendous work
A Great History of a Lost Empire
Forget Byzantium at Your Peril!
Cultural and religious dispersal

Sailing from Byzantium: How a Lost Empire Shaped the World
Colin Wells
Manufacturer: Delacorte Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0553803816
Release Date: 2006-07-25

Book Description

A gripping intellectual adventure story, Sailing from Byzantium sweeps you from the deserts of Arabia to the dark forests of northern Russia, from the colorful towns of Renaissance Italy to the final moments of a millennial city under siege….

Byzantium: the successor of Greece and Rome, this magnificent empire bridged the ancient and modern worlds for more than a thousand years. Without Byzantium, the works of Homer and Herodotus, Plato and Aristotle, Sophocles and Aeschylus, would never have survived. Yet very few of us have any idea of the enormous debt we owe them.

The story of Byzantium is a real-life adventure of electrifying ideas, high drama, colorful characters, and inspiring feats of daring. In Sailing from Byzantium, Colin Wells tells of the missionaries, mystics, philosophers, and artists who against great odds and often at peril of their own lives spread Greek ideas to the Italians, the Arabs, and the Slavs.

Their heroic efforts inspired the Renaissance, the golden age of Islamic learning, and Russian Orthodox Christianity, which came complete with a new alphabet, architecture, and one of the world’s greatest artistic traditions.

The story’s central reference point is an arcane squabble called the Hesychast controversy that pitted humanist scholars led by the brilliant, acerbic intellectual Barlaam against the powerful monks of Mount Athos led by the stern Gregory Palamas, who denounced “pagan” rationalism in favor of Christian mysticism.

Within a few decades, the light of Byzantium would be extinguished forever by the invading Turks, but not before the humanists found a safe haven for Greek literature. The controversy of rationalism versus faith would continue to be argued by some of history’s greatest minds.

Fast-paced, compulsively readable, and filled with fascinating insights, Sailing from Byzantium is one of the great historical dramas–the gripping story of how the flame of civilization was saved and passed on.

Customer Reviews:

Entertaining biographical sketches that shaped the world after 1453.......2007-08-28

This readable history of the historical waves emanating from Byzantine influences is an indispensable work. The style is partly biographical sketches and partly telling of a story making it easily accessible and useful to novice and professional historian alike. The biographical flavor provides the structure for history as events involving human beings with complex characters and mixed motivations acting on the society in their time. The story-telling aspect provides the glue that sweeps the characters and their influence through their geographical dispersions to reveal their influence in Russia, western Europe, and Islam.

An enjoyable read for any historian looking for hints of the Byzantine in the world today. Well done.

Tremendous work.......2007-08-14

This is a great work about an empire that was - and indeed still is - important in our world today. Back when I took a course in Classics in college, my professor lectured us on the importance of the Byzantine Empire, and yet, how few people understand it, and can convey the importance. The author, in my view, has done a truly tremendous job of condensing history down into a very readable, non-intimidating book, which conveys the entire history of Byzantium, from its founding in 500 A.D. to its end in 1493 A.D. The author commands an encyclopedic knowledge of the Classical world, as well as an ability to write. I can't say enough about this work of history. And anyone who might think this is ancient history and doesn't affect us: the history of the clash and cooperation between Islam and Christian civilizations continues to this day (of course). As the author mentions, if the walls of Constantinople had not been so well designed, the Muslims might well have put Europe in a pincer movement in 750 A.D. Instead of being stopped by Charles Martel at Poitiers in France, and turned back, the Muslims might have conquered all of Europe. We would be speaking Arabic now. Yes, it is relevant ! At the same time, the author shows attempts made inside the Arabic Muslim world (which stretched from Spain to Afghanistan) to integrate Greek rationalism and Greek knowledge. Averroes was a famous Arab philosopher who not only championed rationalism, but also kick-started the European Scholastic movement. Unfortunately, Averoes lost out in the Arab world, and the reaction to rationalism, in 850 A.D. began, and continues to this day as Wahhabism in Saudi Arabia. We feel the reverberations to this day...

A very valuable work, at once encyclopedic, and very accessible.

A Great History of a Lost Empire.......2007-06-18

I have always had a fasination with byzantium. This book as well as John Julius Norwich's series of books has helped to appreciate this lost empire more than ever. I especially liked the end of the book where it is just abruptly ended. In a way it made me cry a little to see what could have happened to the world if Byzantium had never have existed. I feel that more people should read this book and be aware of the several contribution that Byzantium has bestowed upon out modern world.

Forget Byzantium at Your Peril!.......2007-05-19

Ignorance of Byzantium (in two senses: lack of knowledge and lack of attention) has confounded Islamicists and Western European historians alike in the past 100 or so years. Colin Wells offers a concise and cogent description of the role Byzantium,including exiled or conquered Byzantines, played in the preservation and transmission of ancient Greek science and philosophy to the Muslim empires of the pre-Crusade "golden age" and directly to Western Europe chiefly by way of Italy. For nearly a thousand years, Byzantium WAS Rome, the hinge of civilization, linking rising and sinking cultures from the Visigoths of North Africa to the Vikings who called themselves Rus, from the humanists of Renaissance Florence to the Nestorian Christians of Syria, the primary translators of the Greek classics into Arabic.
Yet despite the significance of the material presented, it's a fun book, a quick read, written in a relaxed and simple style, accessible even to people who couldn't locate Byzantium on the map. (Hint: "Istanbul is Constantinople, now you can't go back to constantinople...")

Cultural and religious dispersal.......2007-04-20

This is not a "history" book in the exact sense of the term, if you think of "history" books as a linear progression of events. What this author has done is written a very valuable work detailing how the Byzantine Empire spread its culture and religion to its neighbors. The book is divided into three parts, each one showing the effect of Byzantium on 1: Western or "Latin" Christianity, 2: the states in the Balkan area, and 3: what eventually bcame Russia. It's a fascinating tale, extremely well told, and reveals to us that, even though 1453 saw the political end of the Empire, its influence in many different aspects spread and remain even today in many areas. These are subjects rarely, if ever, covered in this context, and should be required reading for anyone interested in obtaining a well-rounded knowledge of Byzantium.

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Unusual Historic Perspective, Written in Suspense
The Perspective Everybody Must Read
An oftentime misunderstood book
Through a mirror darkly...
Cultures Clash and Culture Deceives

Crusades Through Arab Eyes
Amin Maalouf
Manufacturer: Schocken
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0805208984
Release Date: 1989-04-29

Book Description

The author has combed the works of contemporary Arab chronicles of the Crusades, eyewitnesses and often participants. He retells their story and offers insights into the historical forces that shape Arab and Islamic consciousness today.

Customer Reviews:

Unusual Historic Perspective, Written in Suspense.......2007-08-21

The quality of this book speaks for itself, if it is written from the non-Western perspective of the crusades, but manages to score an average of 4,5 of 5 stars from 74 primarily US reviews prior to mine. Especially as the overall sentiment in these reviews stays virtually the same, pre 9-11, immediately post 9-11, during the Bush Crusades and after them.

The book has been written in 1983 in French, translated into English in 1984 and published in the US in 1985. As such, the book would need an update, not only concerning the Bush Crusades, but also about the information that the wannabe assasin of Pope John Paul II in 1981 wasn't the Muslim Turk Mehmet Ali Agca by himself, but a ploy: The puppet master was in the Soviet polit bureau, via Bulgarian and East German secret service ploys. The author Amin Maalouf was born in Lebanon and migrated to France in 1976, during the Lebanese (religious) civil war. He's an Arab Christian.

The book is not meant to inform on the European political, religious, financial and other motivations for the crusades, but starts with the troops arriving in Muslim territories. Hence, it is also not concerned with the prior Muslim conquest of the previously Christian territories. Which in turn had been European-invaded empires by the Romans and Greek, the Jews before that, then the Egyptians, prior to that the Akan and prior in turn the San (Bushmen). But even they were invading "Neanderthal" territory. So please, to anyone: Don't assume, "you" were there originally... (I left out some Asian invaders.) I hoped to find out anything at all about the Christian Nubian empires (either one or all of Nobadia, Makuria, Alwa), which were left alone till then, but got invaded by the Muslims as revenge for helping the Europeans in one of the crusades. Only Abyssinia (today's Ethiopia) remained exempted from the jihad. Not a word even of their existence. So, here's a message: There's a third perspective, one which is even more difficult to find any information of... (Please leave a comment on any known source.)

The title of the book makes the non-Western perspective clear, however, it isn't entirely correct either. But then again, book titles rarely are as the authors often do not have any control over the titles, changed for commercial reasons by the publishers. The author is Arab - not Muslim -, the main sources are historic Arab historians, yet the perspective is written from non-Arab leaders as well, such as Turks, Kurds, Persians, Egyptians. But also Armenians and other local Christians. In addition, it is not about "the crusades", as that would imply all of them. "Of course", it's only about those, which were directed against the Eastern Muslim territories. Not those against Muslim territories in Iberia, not those against Christian "heretics" such as the Waldensians within Europe, not those against European Jews (which were automatic part of any crusade), not those against European "pagans", such as the original Baltic Prussians, which for political reasons some Germans adopted the name from, and not those crusades, which didn't make it to the desired Muslim destinations, such as the Shepherds Crusades and also not the Children's Crusade, as the few surviving kids who really made it to the destination, were enslaved before they could leave the ships. By reading this book's view, you won't get a feeling of "crusades" either, but of one single 200-year-war, with several reinforcements - not numerically listed - of European troops. Who are called "Franj". Referring to all of them, such as the French, Italians, Germans, English etc. The same as all Muslims are headed under "Arabs" in the English title. Differentiations were made towards the "Rum" (pronounce similar to Roome), the Byzantine Christians and of course all the local minority Christians. The German title, translated into English, is more polemic, but more precise at the same time: "The Holy War of the Barbarians".

Most reviewers point out that the book is NOT polemicly subjective against Westerners in contrast to an adulation of the Muslims. I find it even intriguing that the author refrains from listing the civilizing effect on Europe, the crusades had (and earlier Muslim invasions of Iberia and later ones of Eastern and Central Europe). Before the crusades, Europeans didn't have essential items such as sugar and shoes (instead honey and rag/fur wrappings). Not to mention hygiene, which was lost after the Roman empire. The book does mention medicine and a reviewer criticizes that as arbitrary quoting by the author. However, it is historic fact that the Muslims re-introduced medicine into Europe. For one thing, it was considered heretic in Europe to dissect corpses, making it impossible for "doctors" to know, how humans look like inside. It is often said, the Muslims got sophisticated medicine originally from the Romans and Greeks. Part of it, however, all of them received medicine from ancient Black Egyptians. In fact, the latter were able to diagnose fine bone crackings/fractures, something TODAY'S Westernes (nor anybody else) haven't the faintest idea, how they did that without x-rays. Some reviewers think the mentioned cannibalism of some crusaders has to be reproduced historic Muslim propaganda. Not so. There are Western sources, by the crusaders themselves. As the leaders were not able to prevent the masses - not soldiers - travelling with them to engage in that, as they had no control over them anymore. For an elaboration read the 1957 Western book The Pursuit of the Millennium: Revolutionary Millenarians and Mystical Anarchists of the Middle Ages (Galaxy Books). I would like to note that it is amazing how little the author engages in what might be considered biased. For example, he is stating, referring to the last medievil Franj invasion of Egypt: "Never again would the Occidentals attempt to invade the land of the Nile." But in 1798, the Franj returned under Corsican Napoleon. In the 19th century, the UK occupied Egypt, in the 20th century warring resumed, with Israel. Yet, the author isn't using history for tempting more contemporary issues.

The Perspective Everybody Must Read.......2007-08-17

I ordered this book along with one on the Crusades from the Christian perspective (or the 'Western' perspective) hoping to get each side of the story, so to speak.

In picking up both books I was a bit apprehensive wondering whether or not they would be overly one-sided. For example, I was not looking for a piece of 'slam' journalism justifying the Middle East's current ills on the invasions of Crusaders 1000 years ago. This book is certainly not that. Mr. Maalouf painstakingly takes the stories of the Crusades, written by Arab chroniclers, court attendants of the Sultans, and other historical records written during the Crusades themselves, and gives you the story of the Crusades through Arab eyes.

What I found very refreshing about Mr. Maalouf's writing is that he simply didn't rely on the writings as the end all to tell the story, when it was clear that the contemporaneous writings aren't telling the whole story. At times when accounts don't seem credible, or when two accounts differ substantially (such as over the number of deaths at a battle), Mr. Maalouf looks past the hyperbole and rhetoric that can often accompany such tales and notifies the reader that the conflicts exist, or that agreement over such details has not been reached. He then generally takes the effort to research city populations, and army sizes, etc. to come to a satisfactory answer to the question posed. As you can imagine, there are accounts of "10,000" people slaughtered - when we know, now, that the town probably was not big enough to hold more than a couple thousand. Mr. Maalouf goes out of his way to bring you the truth, and not just the rhetoric of the day.

Another thing I truly enjoyed about this account was that the author went out of his way to put the words and writings of the chroniclers in their proper context, which, as you can imagine, makes a big difference, especially for Westerners who may be unfamiliar with Muslims/Arab tradition and the Middle Eastern makeup of the time. For example, before, during, and after the Crusades, the Middle East was wrought with fighting not just between Muslims and Christians, but also between other Muslims (Shia vs. Sunni, Kurd v. Arab v. Persian v. Turk, etc.), and from with other non-Muslim and non-Christan foes (Arabs v. Mongols). The sultans were battling each other. The different sects were battling each other. The Turks and the Persians were encroaching on Arab lands, as were the Byzantines and the Mongols. The Crusaders were attacking Jerusalem. During some points, some Muslim groups even allied themselves with the Crusaders to fight other Muslim groups. Thus, each chronicler (the Crusades lasted hundreds of years) wrote in a different time with a different attitude towards the peoples and places. Some wrote during relative peace, when Christian and Arab coexisted, while some wrote during all-out war. Some wrote when the tensions between Muslims themselves were high, some when there was relative accord. Some chroniclers wrote during periods of Muslim domination, and some wrote during times where it seemed inevitable the Christians would control the Middle East and Islam would die out. Mr. Maalouf ably ties all of the stories together, explaining the different attitudes among chroniclers.

All in all, an excellent book. It is eye-opening, not because it tells some one-sided story as interpreted by today's Muslims, but because it really gives you an understanding about how the people felt then. It truly does tell the story through their eyes - the Arabs of 1000 years ago.

Oh, and it is a "quick" read. That is, nothing in this book bogs down the reader or requires you to grab other books for explanation.

An oftentime misunderstood book.......2007-07-19

This is a good book and a great read. However, it is often read as a "real" history book, which it is not by a long shot, and probably was not intended as such either - Amin Malouf is a very political author, after all. Malouf has written an elegant text as well worth reading as many other introductory books to the crusades. It is telling, however, that the passage most often quoted from "The Crusades through Arab Eyes", Usama ibn Munquidhs 12th-century negative third-hand commentary on "frankish" medicine, has been cut and pasted by Malouf from its original context, omitting the autobiographer's original first-hand positive assessment of the newcomer's medical arts. That example is hardly the only one it the book that makes it readily apparent that Malouf is not a historian and lacks a lot of in-depth knowledge of the period he describes (or worse, has decided to omit details he does not find support his take on things). I read this book much as I read Malouf's other works of historical fiction, but I would not treat it as a real history book.

Through a mirror darkly..........2007-06-27

This is a good companion to a serious study of the Crusades. It gives a lot of interesting info on the state of the arab muslim world in the time period, and the effect the invasion of the Franks had on Islamic identity and political cohesion. The parallels to modern times are inescapable, especialy as regards the seemingly absolute inability of the arab muslim world to unite around a single leader for longer than that leaders lifespan, and sometimes not even that long. What it does accomplish is to humanize the inhabitants of the levant during the crusades, abolishing the "richard lionheart"/ chivalrous knights ideal westerners may still carry. Heat, dirt, disease, terror, death, these were the daily companions of the Crusades, and thier gifts to the people of the eastern mediterranean coast.

Cultures Clash and Culture Deceives.......2007-04-19

This book explains the crusades as primarily political invasions, without much true spirituality involved for many participants. He shows, interestingly, that many Christians were better treated under Muslim rulers than under the rule of Europeans. You will benefit from seeing how there were good people on all sides of the conflicts, as well as the bad.
An important part of this book, is the Epilogue. In this summary, a comparison is made of the "Franj-administered" and "Occidental-administered" territories, with emphasis on the rights and responsibilities of rulers and subjects. There is a lot of wisdom in this comparison, and should be studied well by those attempting to envision institution-building in the future. Especially when any act of violence against the western lands or westerners can be portrayed in Arab media simply as vengeance for expeditions in 1191AD. For reviews of similar books, see the resources pages at civilsociety at seedwiki. Thanks.

When Baghdad Ruled the Muslim World: The Rise And Fall of Islam's Greatest Dynasty

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Great Introduction
Needed a few more details to make it perfect
An Era I Knew Little About
Fabulous history
Rivetting narrative

When Baghdad Ruled the Muslim World: The Rise And Fall of Islam's Greatest Dynasty
Hugh Kennedy
Manufacturer: Da Capo Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0306814803

Book Description

"A beautifully written and definitive history of Baghdad...opening the doors to the old city and letting its secrets spill out." (Library Journal)

The "golden age of Islam" in the eighth and ninth centuries was as significant to world history as the Roman Empire was in the first and second centuries. The rule of Baghdad's Abbasid Dynasty stretched from Tunisia to India, and its legacy influenced politics and society for years to come. In this deftly woven narrative, Hugh Kennedy introduces us to the rich history and flourishing culture of the period, and the men and women of the palaces at Baghdad and Samarra-the caliphs, viziers, eunuchs, and women of the harem that produced the glorious days of the Arabian Nights.

"Superb...this is compelling reading for anyone concerned with the perils of power, the medieval Islamic legacy and the images that Baghdad continues to conjure in the modern imagination." (Publishers Weekly starred review)

Customer Reviews:

Great Introduction.......2007-09-05

This is one of the best history books that I have read. The best thing about it is that it reads like a novel. When you start reading it you cant stop because you really want to know what happens next, and most of the time I already knew what was going to happen!

Needed a few more details to make it perfect.......2006-08-08

Hugh Kennedy has done a wonderful job here of writing about one of the greatest dynasties in history. The history is comprehensive providing details about the caliphs, the battles for successions, their harems, the names of important men in each reign, and court intrigues etc., The book is very easy to read and at no point does the reader lose interest. In spite of breaking up the narration, of successive reigns and interspersing it with descriptions of court culture and palaces built by the rulers, the author has maintained a wonderful flow in the book.
My only disappointment was that the author did not provide more indepth information on 1. the famous libraries of Baghdad and 2. the economic and financial system prevalent at the time. I looked in vain for details of trading markets and goods brought in to Baghdad at the time and for any mention of the modus operandi of monetary transactions.
However, the book is still one of the most comprehensive English Language histories of the dynasty that I have come accross.

An Era I Knew Little About.......2006-06-07

So much of the study of history is concerned with dates. I can remember in college with cram sheets of when things happened. Mr. Kennedy doesn't write much of dates. He writes of people, people living more than a thousand years ago when our own western history was in a period we call the dark ages when learning was forgotten and the Roman Catholic church ruled all.

This was the time when the Shia and the Sunni were falling apart and beginning the conflict that rages to this day (In the morning paper a group of terrorists in Iraq stopped a bus or two, let the Sunni people go and murdered the Shia.)

This was the time that Osama bin Laden seeks to re-establish. An old glory such as Mussolini felt about Roman times.

For a couple of centuries a family ruled most of the Islamic world from Baghdad. For those of us more familiar with the antics of the kings of England there is a striking resemblance, palace intrigue, key supporters changing sides, murder, imprisonment, struggles over succession.

This book brings to life an aspect of history that few of us have heard before but which is increasing in importance in our time.

Fabulous history.......2006-02-15

I studied the medieval Islamic world a little in college, and fell in love. It's a fascinating age in which Central Asian Buddhists, North African nomads, Ethiopian slaves, Greek cave-dwellers, Persian aristocrats, Arab bureaucrats and a host of different cultures came together, mixed, wrote wonderful literature, and lived the kind of drama that makes history fun. But it's hard to find anything written about the time that isn't arcane professor babble or Islam 101. (You know, "There are five pillars of Islam..." Snore.)

Here Hugh Kennedy has written the book I always wanted. He wisely concentrates on medieval Islam's golden age, the early Abbasid dynasty, when Baghdad ruled a large portion of the world-and, even more astutely, on the dramatic stories and personalities of the court. Let's face it, you read about the Abbasids because you want to know how the slave girl Khayzuran not only managed to marry the caliph but to quell a military revolt, why her son Harun al-Rashid was immortalized in The Arabian Nights, and why the all-powerful Barmakid family suddenly fell from grace to prison and execution. Kennedy brings the caliphs and their families to life. He's up front about the fact that the book is about aristocrats, but the common people of Baghdad, the "pickpockets and sellers of cheap sweets" who fought back when their city was besieged, and the middle class who developed Islamic tradition dance around the edge of the narrative.

Kennedy doesn't believe everything he reads, and doesn't think you will either. He repeats stories-like the "harem intrigue" tales, in which devious women are blamed for various deaths-that are almost certainly not true, but tell us something about the people who believed them, and are still enormously entertaining. He also is frank about the same-sex relationships, male and female, that were a part of the era's culture, without the awkwardness of many modern historians. And he's smart enough to explain the geography-why southern Iraq could support such a fabulously wealthy monarchy, and why the Afghanistan/NE Iran region was so critical to the faraway Middle East-in a way an American can understand. Very rare for books on Islamic history, the book boasts an excellent map, naming both cities and regions-invaluable for a hapless Westerner who doesn't know where the major cities of Iran are today, never mind where long-gone kingdoms like Yamama and Ushrusana used to be. There's also a surprisingly good index (another rarity).

The book isn't flawless. Kennedy twice awkwardly interrupts his straightforward account of political events with fascinating chapters on aspects of court culture-palaces, poetry, science, and (my favorite) women's lives. Unfortunately, this structure means the reader learns about the palace Mutawakkil built before she knows enough about him to care, and doesn't hear anything about Ma'mun patronage of scientific research until long after he's dead in the main narrative. The last chapter goes into far too much detail about the depressing downfall of the dynasty, short-changing a more interesting discussion about its legacy. But all in all Kennedy does a great job, and I for one plan down to hunt down his earlier books.

If you know nothing about Islamic history and want an accessible introduction to an fascinating period, or like me know a little and want to learn more, I highly recommend this book.

Rivetting narrative.......2006-01-14

This purely popular tale of the Baghdad Abbasid Caliphate is a wonderful book, full of splendor and tales of the times of the Caliphs, the Harem, early Islam, the founding of modern Baghdad, luxury, corruption, bad governance, murder, passion, rape, affluence gone wild, gluttony, exorbitance, decadence and political failure.

The Abbasids were the first dynasty following the first four `righteous' caliphs(Bakr, Omar, Uthman, Ali) who followed the death of Mohammed. The movement of the capital of Islam to Baghdad symbolized the secular transference of temporal power from its religious foundations into a colonial capital of imperial Islam, after-all the region around Baghdad, modern day Iraq, then Mesopotamia, was a country full of Jews, Zoroastrians, Pagans, Assyrian Christians, Nestorians, Jacobites, Gnosts and others. Muslims were a minority in this land. Baghdad was a new city created to rule a colonial empire that was recently created. The empire that the Abbasids ruled was wealthy beyond belief, corrupt, licentious, full of slander, moral turpitude and court scandals. This excellent tale of this period doesn't really shed light on the modern `conflict' as claimed but it is an excellent fascinating tale, unfortunately it doesn't follow the narrative of Baghdad through to its destruction by the Mongols, but only to the replacement of the Abbasids by the Fatamids who rode to power on the backs of Turkic immigrant warriors from the east, see the book `black banners from the east' for a narrative of the rise of the Fatamids. If this sheds light on anything to do with Islam and modern times it shows that fundamentalist Islam's accusations of Western power, wealth and immorality, are mirrored in the actions of early Islam, which resembled the modern day west far more than modern day Islam, an irony. Islam in the 8th century was far from the fundamentalist form we see today, however there is nothing admirable in its use of Harems and slavery.

Seth J. Frantzman

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Islamic Art

Islamic Art and Architecture 650-1250
Richard Ettinghausen , Oleg Grabar , and Marilyn Jenkins-Madina
Manufacturer: Yale University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Islam: A Thousand Years of Faith and Power

ASIN: 0300088698

Book Description

This richly illustrated book provides an unsurpassed overview of Islamic art and architecture during a time that witnessed the formation of a new artistic culture and its first, medieval, flowering in the vast area from the Atlantic to India. Inspired by Ettinghausen and Grabar's original text, this book has been completely rewritten and updated, and many new illustrations have been added.

Customer Reviews:

Islamic Art.......2007-08-27

This book contains the 'nut shell' of Islamic Art and Architecture. There are some plans, and many color photographs. Each project is accompanied by text explaining it and it's cultural significance. For someone who has an interest in the geometries and forms of Islamic Art this book was worth it.

Islam: A Short History (Modern Library Chronicles)

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A great introduction to the history of Islam.
Good book for general explanation
Islam: A Short History is very good
Politically correct lies
Concise but sufficient

Islam: A Short History (Modern Library Chronicles)
Karen Armstrong
Manufacturer: Modern Library
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Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet
A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam
Buddha
The Battle for God
Muhammad: A Prophet for Our Time (Eminent Lives)

ASIN: 081296618X
Release Date: 2002-08-06

Amazon.com

The picture of Islam as a violent, backward, and insular tradition should be laid to rest, says Karen Armstrong, bestselling author of Muhammad and A History of God. Delving deep into Islamic history, Armstrong sketches the arc of a story that begins with the stirring of revelation in an Arab businessman named Muhammad. His concern with the poor who were being left behind in the blush of his society's new prosperity sets the tone for the tale of a culture that values community as a manifestation of God. Muhammad's ideas catch fire, quickly blossoming into a political empire. As the empire expands and the once fractured Arabs subdue and overtake the vast Persian domain, the story of a community becomes a panoramic drama. With great dexterity, Armstrong narrates the Sunni-Shi'ite schism, the rise of Persian influence, the clashes with Western crusaders and Mongolian conquerors, and the spiritual explorations that traced the route to God. Armstrong brings us through the debacle of European colonialism right up to the present day, putting Islamic fundamentalism into context as part of a worldwide phenomenon. Islam: A Short History, like Bruce Lawrence's Shattering the Myth and Mark Huband's Warriors of the Prophet, introduces us to a faith that beckons like a minaret to those who dare to venture beyond the headlines. --Brian Bruya

Book Description

No religion in the modern world is as feared and misunderstood as Islam. It haunts the popular imagination as an extreme faith that promotes terrorism, authoritarian government, female oppression, and civil war. In a vital revision of this narrow view of Islam and a distillation of years of thinking and writing about the subject, Karen Armstrong’s short history demonstrates that the world’s fastest-growing faith is a much more complex phenomenon than its modern fundamentalist strain might suggest.

Customer Reviews:

A great introduction to the history of Islam........2007-09-27

This is a really great book to understand Islam. I truly loved this book, and because of its small size, I was able to devour it within two days!

The most interesting chapter as far as I am concerned was on the present conflict between the Jews and the Muslims.

Muslims never hated the Jews. In fact, Muslims and Jews lived together side by side in peace since the beginning of time (so to speak). Prophet Mohammad ordered Muslims to respect Jews and live with them in peace since they are `people of the book' (meaning they have had their own revelations and are thus believers in God). Prophet Mohammad ordered Muslims not to try to convert Jews to Islam against their wish. In fact, Muslims believe in all of the prophets of Judaism, and most if not all are mentioned in the Muslim holy book known as the Qur'an.

Prophet Ibrahim, the father of both Muslims and Jews, had many children. The Jews come from the lineage of one of Ibrahim's sons, while the Moslems come from another of Ibrahim's sons. Therefore, Muslims and Jews are cousins.

Throughout history, Muslims and Jews have fought together side by side. During the crusades they fought together to protect the holy land. During the Muslim occupation of Spain Muslims and Jews fought together side by side against the Europeans. During the British occupation of Palestine, both Moslems and Jews fought together against the British. There has never been any enmity within Jews and Muslims throughout history. It is only after the invasion by the Jews of Palestine, and the formation of the State of Israel on Palestinian land, that the aggression between Muslims and Jews started. That started the flame of hatred between them, and Muslim clerks twisted the sayings of Prophet Mohammad and the Qur'an for political reasons. In other words, they put words into the Prophet's mouth. Things he never said or did not mean were suddenly attributed to him. The Arab world, being uneducated, would blindly follow the teachings of the clergy, and this is where we are today. The hatred between Jews and Muslims is political. It is the same hatred the French had towards the Germans when they invaded Paris during World War II. If the United States were to be invaded today by the Russians or Chinese (or any other nation), the Americans would have the same hatred towards their aggressors as the Muslims have today of the Jews. Like the Muslims, the American citizens would be fighting the aggressor to regain their land by any means possible, even if it means twisting the words of Jesus Christ. For example, love thy neighbor, but only if he loves you. If someone slaps you, turn the other cheek, but then beat the hell out of him! You get the point. The conflict in Palestine is man and woman against man and woman, not Judaism against Islam.

This book will really give you a crash course on Islam. It starts off by explaining why a new prophet was needed in the Arab World. According to Armstrong, the Arabs felt left out for they did not have a prophet of their own. The Jews had many prophets, and there were manuscripts left to them from past prophets. The Arabs did not have monotheistic religious texts of their own in the Arabic language, and thus felt left out. Thus the arrival of Prophet Mohammad, an Arab, was a great welcome to many Arabs. The Qur'an, the holy book descended to Prophet Mohammad, was in the Arabic language, and thus directly accessible to all Arabs, unlike Jewish texts.

Prophet Mohammad did have Arab enemies, of course. Not all Arabs embraced his religion at first. As is so well known today, self-interest and politics plays a big role.

A very important point Armstrong makes is that Islam is a religion of peace. In fact, Islam is derived from the Arabic root "Salema", meaning peace and purity. Prophet Mohammad was against wars. In fact, he made an important treaty with the Meccans to prove his point. Prophet Mohammad preached non-violence. All the Muslim wars and conquests that took place after the death of Prophet Mohammad were politically motivated, not religious in any way. It is very easy to twist the words of a prophet, and all religions have done that with their prophets (look at how many different versions of the Bible are out there). Furthermore, there were many wars waged between Muslims themselves as to who should succeed the prophet. Most of the Prophet's friends and close relatives were eventually murdered as a result. All these actions would have been condemned by the Prophet. Again, man was fighting for his own self-interest and ambition and not in accordance with the holy teachings of Islam (again, as has happened in all religions).

The book then goes on with the history of Islam after the era of the Prophet (632-661). Armstrong explains the era of the Umayyads, the Abbasids, and the esoteric movements. The Muslim world had reached its height in glory, and the whole known world feared the Muslims. The Muslims contributed to philosophy, science, mathematics, and medicine, and Arabic texts were translated into Latin and Greek. The Muslim empire at the time was what the United States is today to the rest of the world.

The Crusades are also explained, as well as the interesting era of the Mongols (1220-1500). The chapter on the Mongol was very interesting, filled with facts and stories I never knew. For example, the Mongols contributed a lot to Islamic art and architecture as well as to the strategies of war. After the Mongol conquests, the Mongols and the Muslims lived together in peace, and were even integrated together. Many Mongols later became Muslims.

Armstrong then moves on to the era of imperial Islam (1500-1700), and introduces the reader to the Safavid Empire, the Moghul Empire, and the Ottoman Empire.

The book ends with a chapter on Islam agonists, and explains how the west finally conquered the Islamic world starting in 1750. This chapter is extremely interesting and entertaining, and will give you a glimpse at the present state of the Muslim world.

Armstrong mentions the book `The Satanic Verses', by Salman Rushdie. Even though the Ayatollah Khomeini condemned the author, and issued a Fatwa (a decree) to have the author killed (with a million dollar reward), all the Islamic clergy of other Islamic nations were against the Ayatollah's decree, citing freedom of speech and expression as an Islamic right. Now isn't this interesting? Again, for political reasons, Muslim citizens are stripped from their freedom of expression, speech, and thought. Outsiders looking at the way of life of Muslims should realize that the way Muslims live is not according to the teachings of their Prophet Mohammad, but according to the selfish greed of their leaders! This is really a very important point for westerners to understand.

This is a very important book and should be read by everyone interested in knowing more about the state of the Arab world and Islam. I highly recommend this book!

Good book for general explanation.......2007-09-04

This book will explain the basics of Islam, which is all I was looking for.

Islam: A Short History is very good.......2007-08-31

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I have since given it to several people, including some military folks with responsibilities in the area. I think this book, better than any other I've read, makes it clear why the Middle East is in the state it is.

Politically correct lies.......2007-07-29

Why defend a religion who's holy book hates and despises Jews, Christians and Pagans, and commands husbands to beat their wives.
Of course there have been cases of brilliant people even under Islamic domination, e.g. Omar Khayan, but to attribute their achievements to Islam, is like attributing Galileo's achievements to Catholicism.

Concise but sufficient.......2007-07-05

I'm going to take exception to all the criticism of the majority of the reviews I see here. While it is a compressed history (one reviewer noted that the middle was "dense") I found the book very enlightening. Another criticism is that she presents an Islamic point of view. Well, if one wishes to understand another culture, religion or whatever, one must 'walk a mile in their shoes'. I know some Muslims and she is quite correct that Islam in not inherently violent. I can only assume that those reviewers are reading the book with their blinders on and refusing to accept that there is any other way to see the world. This book is an attempt to show another world view. If you read this book and miss that, shame on you.

The History of Islamic Political Thought: From the Prophet to the Present

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Incorrect Views on Ibn Khaldun

The History of Islamic Political Thought: From the Prophet to the Present
Antony Black
Manufacturer: Routledge
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0415932432

Book Description

Islam is enormously important today in both international and national domestic politics, but contemporary political Islam cannot be understood without an awareness of it roots. Yet, little attention has been paid to the way its political ideas originated how they developed. The i History of Islamic Political Thought /i offers a full description and an interpretation of political philosophy from early Islam to the current age of Fundamentalism (622 AD to 2000 AD). Antony Black takes the same approach as scholars usually do for the history of Western political thought, examining the mentality, cultural milieu, and political background of thinkers and statesmen. He covers the relationship of politics to religion, law, ethics, philosophy, and statecraft, as expressed through treatises, occasional writings, official rhetoric, popular slogans, and other evidence of how people thought about authority and order. This unique and ambitious book will appeal to students of Islamic studies and political theory, as well as readers interested in Islamic politics more generally.

Customer Reviews:

Incorrect Views on Ibn Khaldun.......2006-08-23

The history of the political theory of Islamic governance which throughout Orthodox Sunni history has been based in the fields of fiqh (jurisprudence) and usool al-fiqh (islamic legal theory) and in Heterodox views through Greeco-Roman Philosophy and other sources is an extremely fundamental aspect of Islamic history and understanding the modern world. I would disagree with the author though on his analysis of Ibn Khaldun's thought which I believe was terrible. Professor Antony repeats the mistakes made by various other Sociologists, Philosophers, and Historians in analyzing Ibn Khaldun. Ibn Khaldun in fact was not as heterodox and opposed to Orthodoxy as people make him out to be. In fact, if you know and read Arabic you will find him regarded as a authority on traditional and Orthodox Islam by the later generations of traditional `ullema. Ibn Khaldun's views were in fact rooted and based in the Islamic Orthodoxy of the `ullema - as he himself was a `alim himself! He was the cheif Maliki judge, as well as supportive of the theological Orthodoxy contained in al-Ghazali and others. One only has to read his Muqaddimah even in translation to realize this in his various sections such as "A Refutation of Philosophy," as well as his denial of causality (and the misconception that he disagreed on this point was throughly refuted by H.A.R. Gibb in "The Islamic Roots of Ibn Khaldun's Political Theory" where it is explained that his stance on causality was nothing more than the traditionalist stance of Sunnat Allah). His proof for the existence of God is almost -if not the exact same - proof as Imam Sanusi's proof contained in his theological epistle "Umm al-Barahin" and Imam Sanusi was one of the `ullema and traditional authorities of Orthodoxy. Although he was trained in Western knowledge and quotes Aristotle and others and built upon their ideas - there is no proof what so ever that this was done from anything other than a *secular perspective* and not a Theological one. Yes, Ibn Khaldun was a member of traditional Islamic Orthodoxy, and he indeed was a pioneer of economic, sociological, and political thought - yet his religious views were that of Islamic Orthodoxy and are recognized as being so up until today by both Islamic `ullema themselves as well as many Western scholars. I hope Professor Antony will correct this error in an otherwise excellent collection.

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The Crusades: Islamic Perspectives
Hillenbrand's The Crsuades: Islamic Perspectives
A Wonderful Resource

The Crusades: Islamic Perspectives
Car Hillenbrand
Manufacturer: Routledge
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Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0415929148

Book Description

Nine hundred years after the Crusader capture of Jerusalem, Carole Hillenbrand shows us the other side of conquest. This comprehensive work of cultural history gives us something we have never had: a view of the Crusades as seen through Muslim eyes. With breathtaking command of medieval Muslim sources as well as the vast literature on medieval European and Muslim culture, Carole Hillenbrand has produced a book that shows not only how the Crusades were perceived by the Muslims, but how the Crusades affected the Muslim world - militarily, culturally, and psychologically. As the author persuasively demonstrates, that influence continues now, centuries after the events.

In The Crusades the reader discovers how the Muslims reacted to the Franks, and how Muslim populations were displaced, the ensuing period of jihad, the careers of Nur al-Din and Saladin, and the interpenetration of Muslim and Christian cultures. Stereotypes of the Franks in Muslim documents offer a fascinating counter to Western views of the infidel of legend.

For readers interested in the Middle Ages, military history, the history of religion, and postcolonial studies, The Crusades opens a window onto a conflict we have only viewed from one side.

The Crusades is richly illustrated, with eighteen color plates and over five hundred line drawings and black and white photographs.

Customer Reviews:

The Crusades: Islamic Perspectives.......2001-06-19

This is the best-produced academic paperback I have ever seen. The book is wonderfully illustrated. The photographs are supplemented by hundreds of intriguing drawings in the wide margins. The text is spaciously presented and easy to read. I found zero typographical errors in more than six hundred pages of text, a delight in these days of hasty editing. Hillenbrand's writing is clear, straightforward, and balanced. The book presents a much-needed new perspective on the Crusades. Five stars.

Hillenbrand's The Crsuades: Islamic Perspectives.......2000-09-20

This book is an excellent review of the most up-to-date knowledge we have about contemporary Islamic persepctives on the "Wars of the Cross." The author carefully sets our her purpose in writing this work, which includes both Muslim sources for the major figures and events, as well as Muslim perceptions of the Crusaders and how the Crusades have influenced Middle Eastern history. Anyone wishing to learn fully about this time period must read this work.

A Wonderful Resource.......2000-06-17

I have only skimmed the surface of this book, yet am very impressed. The bibliography alone is a treasure for anyone studying the Crusades. It's arranged so that the translated chronicles are used to illustrate points in the narrative. The index is detailed and useful, while the narrative itself is easy to read and divided into subsections within the chapters (for example: Old Frankish Women, Marriage, Medicine etc.) A welcome addition to Crusades scholarship, especially for students/readers who cannot read the originals.

The Middle East: Fourteen Islamic Centuries, Third Edition

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There are better introductory books than this one
Great Basic Overview of Islamic Civilizations

The Middle East: Fourteen Islamic Centuries, Third Edition
Glenn E. Perry
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
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Understanding Islam: An Introduction to the Muslim World, Second Edition
Introduction to Islam, An (3rd Edition)

ASIN: 0132663392

Book Description

Reflecting today's most recent findings, this enlightening book presents an even-handed survey of Middle Eastern history from the rise of Islam to the present day, beginning with a substantial account of the early centuries and then concentrating primarily on the modern, post-1914 decades. It provides concise, readable, and balanced coverage of Egypt, the Fertile Crescent, the Arabian Peninsula, Turkey, and Iran, and offers ten detailed maps and a useful bibliography of selected works to broaden readers' understanding. Deals with the whole Middle Eastern region within particular periods - rather than on a topical or country-by-country basis - allowing readers to see the events in each country at any point in relation to what is happening in other parts of the Middle East. Offers a world/historical perspective, emphasizing the relationship of the Middle East to other regions and civilizations, particularly with the West. Highlights from the Third Edition include a new section dealing with events from 1991 to 1996; an examination of the controversy over Orientalism; an updated bibliography; new glossary of terms (many relating specifically to Islam); and an appendix which fully explains the Pillars of Islam and Jihad. For historians, anthropologists, and those in business and government.

Customer Reviews:

There are better introductory books than this one.......2005-08-10

Perry has written a good introduction to the history of the Middle East, but there are several other books that are much better. First, about the book.

Perry begins with a very brief preview of the Middle East before Islam - this is really a disservice, as one of the cradles of world civilization is in the Near East, and it has since been of great significance. One chapter only scratches the surface. The next third of the book covers the birth, growth and spread of Islam through the end of the 18th century. Again, my primary complaint is that it covers the material an inch deep and a mile wide - much attention is given the Ottomans, while there is scant information on the Safavids (or Persia) and Mughals (of India) and even then it is entirely too short. The majority of the book is concerned with events in the 19th and 20th centuries. The information is good, and is the best part of the book - but without a deeper background, I found it lacking.

It is an easy read, if terribly general. For those interested in a history of Islam with a little more depth that is still easy to read I would strongly recommend Bernard Lewis' _A History of the Middle East_. For an excellent discussion of the Islamic world in great detail, I would recommend Alber Hourani's _A History of the Muslim Peoples_; and to gain a stronger understanding of the modern Middle East, try David Fromkin's _A Peace to End All Peace_. Perry is good, but these are much better.

Great Basic Overview of Islamic Civilizations.......2001-12-22

Perry book is a highly readable and informative guide to the development of the Middle East as we know it today. It gives a basic overview of every major event from the birth of Muhammad to the Modern day. It also does an excellent job of discuss the outside forces and ideas that have shaped the middle east. The only real drawback is the ridiculous price.

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hard to read
A Good History but at Times Frustrating
Good Information/Poor Presentation
Heraclius - Hero of Byzantium
A superb work

Heraclius, Emperor of Byzantium
Walter E. Kaegi
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
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Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0521814596

Book Description

This book evaluates the life and empire of the pivotal yet controversial Byzantine emperor Heraclius (ad. 610-641), a contemporary of the Prophet Muhammad. His stormy war-torn reign is critical for understanding the background to fundamental changes in the Balkans and the Middle East, including the emergence of Islam. Heraclius' skills enabled him to capture and recapture important territory, including Jerusalem, Syria and Egypt. Yet, they proved to be of little value when he confronted early Islamic conquests.

Customer Reviews:

hard to read.......2007-07-05

the emperor heraclius deserves better than this, a biography researched well enough but written so badly it's painful. every paragraph seems composed of a collection of topic sentences, the same preliminary facts reiterated again and again with no deeper analysis. better to read harry turtledove's fine translation of theophanes, or even jj norwich's fairly slipshod acct in his history of byzantium.

A Good History but at Times Frustrating.......2007-02-23

This is a good sound academically written book. It addresses a little known personality whose life reads like a Greek tragedy; triumph, defeat, triumph again and finally ignominous failure. Keagi has, I'm sure, mined the available ancient texts but the repetition of his speculations, naturally without recorded foundations, does get a bit tedious. Still, he makes a convincing case that Heraclius was no First Crusader, as another book on this emperor implies. That was simply because the Byzantines did not quite understand the religious implications of the Muslim movement in the beginning. I recommend this book for all history buffs of this era and this empire.

Good Information/Poor Presentation.......2006-02-27

Only those who have a hightened interest in Byzantine history should select this text. The book presents an interesting view of Africa and Egypt under Byzantine rule; a subject not often covered in other histories of the Empire, but the writer seems unsure of his sources and seems to question his own statements. The book reads like a thesis and lacks any punch or drama that can be found in other works on Byzantium.

If the general reader is ever going to learn more about the glories of Byzantium, specialists have got to start writing more intriguing stuff... one would be hard-pressed to know why Byzantine has taken on its modern meaning after reading this book.

Heraclius - Hero of Byzantium.......2004-03-13

Heraclius saved the Byzantine Empire from sure destruction at the hands of the Persians, only to be confronted by the onslaught of Islam in the early seventh century. Piecing together Heraclius' life and remarkable achivement from fragmentary sources is no easy task, but Walter Kaegi has succeeded in creating an account of Heraclius that will long remain the oft cited standard. Critics will find details to quibble about, but what book is beyond criticism? In fact, Kaegi demonstrates the art of the careful and critical historian, sifting through pieces of evidence to arrive at well balanced judgments. His extraordinary handling of the Greek sources is matched by that applied to the Arabic (how many western historians can say that?), and his knowledge of the Armenian and Syraic sources is no less inferior. Moreover, Kaegi is among the few historians who has ever set foot in the area of Syria and Palestine where the critical battles between Byzantines and Persians/Arabs occurred, not to mention Iraq. Kaegi takes the reader through all this and shows just what can be known in a sure handed way, so that even the novice reader can learn of the heroic Heraclius and the great events of his day.

A superb work.......2003-08-09

This work depicts the trials of a man placed at the helm of one of the most tumultuous times in history, and is a must read for anyone interested in the Middle East. Most fascinating is Kaegi's depiction of the rise of Islam, which greatly diminished the massive Byzantine Empire and changed the history of the world. Kaegi not only examines why the Byzantines lost to the invaders, but also tries to understand Heraclius' role as an effective military leader. Kaegi makes the history come alive to the reader, but does not overstep the bounds of reality by creating fiction. All of his claims are cited and well-reasoned.
Besides being the first major comprehensive biography of Heraclius in the English language and being a compelling read, this is a work to be emulated. Walter Kaegi examines myriad Arabic and Greek primary sources, while also providing a thorough examination of secondary sources and arguments from academia. He does not stop there. His research into libraries throughout the United States, Europe, and the Middle East is then coupled with his on the ground research in both North Africa and the Near East. Walter Kaegi actually visited the sites about which he writes, and knows well the geography.
I strongly recommend this work for both experts and non-experts alike.

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