When Phil is strangely drawn to an old watch in a Beijing curio shop, he little realises that his whole life is about to change. With the help of the watch he travels back in time to take part in momentous episodes in the history of the 20th Century. Interwoven with his time travels adventures are the events shaping his life in the present day, back in his ancestral home in Scotland and in his lively bachelor existence in London. Phil is sometimes in command of the magical watch, and somet...

I could feel the tension in their bodies, with every step that hit the ground as their feet firmly pressed into the earth. The fast pace of their heart beats echoing on the outside of their chests. The vibration from the air moving from their lungs to the outside of their bodies, as they ran through the woods; " Run faster", I could hear the mysterious women yell to her companion. Although, to me sounded like a whisper in my ear. Suddenly out of the darkness in the woods appeared a man, st...

This is a special audio-only production!Turn down the lights. Let a candle flicker in the dark. Curl up for some spooky tales about ghosts and things unseen.This creepy collection of stories includes classic and modern spins on stories of the dead. There are tales of haunted houses, and haunted individuals. Of places that are beyond the realm of the ordinary. And, of course, the things that go bump in the night. Written by eleven talented writers and performed by engaging n...

In Radical Arab Nationalism and Political Islam, Lahouari Addi attempts to assess the history and political legacy of radical Arab nationalism to show that it contained the seeds of its own destruction. While the revolutionary regimes promised economic and social development and sought the unity of Arab nations, they did not account for social transformations, such as freedom of speech, that would eventually lead to their decline. But while radical Arab nationalism fell apart, aut...

In Islamic Exceptionalism, Brookings Institution scholar and acclaimed author Shadi Hamid offers a novel and provocative argument on how Islam is, in fact, "exceptional" in how it relates to politics, with profound implications for how we understand the future of the Middle East. Divides among citizens aren't just about power but are products of fundamental disagreements over the very nature and purpose of the modern nation state—and the vexing problem of religion's role in public...

A provocative manifesto for an interpretation of Islam that synthesizes liberal ideas and respect for the Islamic tradition.From furious reactions to the cartoons of Prophet Muhammad to the suppression of women, news from the Muslim world begs the question: is Islam incompatible with freedom? With an eye sympathetic to Western liberalism and Islamic theology, Mustafa Akyol traces the ideological and historical roots of political Islam. The years following Muhammad's passing in 632 ...

One of the most important developments in the modern history of the Middle East, the so-called Arab Spring began in Tunisia in December 2010, bringing down dictators, sparking a civil war in Libya, and igniting a bloody uprising in Syria. Its long-term repercussions in Egypt and elsewhere remain unclear. Now one of the world's leading Islamic thinkers examines and explains it, in this searching, provocative, and necessary book.Time Magazine named Tariq Ramadan one of the most important inn...

This pioneering explanation of the Arab Spring will define a new era of thinking about the Middle East.In this landmark book, Hamid Dabashi argues that the revolutionary uprisings that have engulfed multiple countries and political climes from Morocco to Iran and from Syria to Yemen, were driven by a 'Delayed Defiance' - a point of rebellion against domestic tyranny and globalized disempowerment alike - that signifies no less than the end of Postcolonialism. Sketching a new geograp...

The study of Islamic law can be a forbidding prospect for those entering the field for the first time. Wael Hallaq, a leading scholar and practitioner of Islamic law, guides students through the intricacies of the subject in this absorbing introduction. The first half of the book is devoted to a discussion of Islamic law in its pre-modern natural habitat. The second part explains how the law was transformed and ultimately dismantled during the colonial period. In the final chapters, the au...

"[A] concise and thoughtful history of the evolution of the Islamic legal system from the time of the first caliphs to our own" from the bestselling author ( U.S. News & World Report).One of Economist's Best Books of the YearWinner of the PROSE Award in Government and Politics, Association of American PublishersIn this incisive book, Harvard law professor Noah Feldman tells the story behind the increa...

Explores the role of women’s status, bodies, and sexuality in global conflicts.Women's bodies have become a battleground. Around the world, people argue about veiling, schooling for Afghan girls, and "SlutWalk" protests, all of which involve issues of women's sexuality and freedom. Globalization, with its emphasis on human rights and individuality, heats up these arguments. In Of Virgins and Martyrs, David Jacobson takes the reader on a fascinating tour of...

How secular governance in the Middle East is making life worse—not better—for religious minoritiesThe plight of religious minorities in the Middle East is often attributed to the failure of secularism to take root in the region. Religious Difference in a Secular Age challenges this assessment by examining four cornerstones of secularism—political and civil equality, minority rights, religious freedom, and the legal separation of private and public domains.