Selected Product:
| A History of Islamic Societies
Paperback
Edition: 2
Author: Ira M. Lapidus
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Release Date: 2002-08-26
ISBN-10: 0521779332
ISBN-13: 9780521779333
List Price: $50.00
Average Customer Rating:
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The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates: The Islamic Near East from the 6th to the 11th Century (2nd Edition) (A History Of The Near East)
ISBN-10: 0582405254
ISBN-13: 9780582405257
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ISBN-13: 9780674010178
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Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com
Long considered a classic, A History of Islamic Societies is now that much more useful a reference for general readers and scholars alike. Widely praised for its balanced and comprehensive account, Ira Lapidus' work has been fully revised in its coverage of each country and region of the Muslim world through 2001. It incorporates the origins and evolution of Islamic societies and brings into focus the historical processes that gave shape to the manifold varieties of contemporary Islam. The concluding chapters survey the growing influence of the Islamist movements within national states and in their transnational or global dimensions, including the Islamic revival, Islamist politics and terrorism. An updated discussion of the roles of women in Islamic societies is added, with new sections about Afghanistan and Muslims in Europe, America, and the Philippines. Ira M. Lapidus is Professor Emeritus of History at the University of California at Berkeley. His many books and articles include Islam, Politics and Social Movements (University of California Press, 1988) and Muslim Cities in the Later Middle Ages (Cambridge, 1984).
Everything was as I hoped for
| Customer Rating: | It's really simple, everything went superb! Costs were low, service as aspected, and shipping was really fast (to the netherlands)
so, 100% GOOD |
A good introduction but half propoganda
| Customer Rating: | Like most books on Islam written in the west this is an introduction written from a Muslim perspective with no critique and no willingness to question traditional Muslim accounts. For an example of this one must go no further than the first chapter where Muhammed is referred to as "the prophet". But this characterization is strange, books on Western Christian history do not refer to Jesus as 'the son of god'. So why must one implicitly accept the tenants of Islam in order to read its history? Muslims beleive Muhammed was 'the prophet' but others do not. The early history of Islam is covered with competance and the later history is truly helpful for it covers Islam in far off places such as Southeast Asia, central asia and africa, areas not usually covered in histories of Islam.
But then there is the other strangely titled chapter: "colonialism and the defeat of Muslim expansion." How is it that 'colonialism' defeated Muslim expansion in Africa? Muslim expansion in Africa was colonialistic and it was built on the trade in slaves for profit. Much of Islamic expansion was based on the same colonialistic and racist models as the west, except that Muslim colonization of Europe, Africa and India began in the 10th and 11th century whereas Europeanc colonialism didnt begin until the 15th. Thus this book is full of semantics which are pure fabrications and it is because this book, like most on the subject, refuses to exact the same rigorous critique of Islamic history that western history is subjected to.
Seth J. Frantzman |
An excellent comprehensive survey
| Customer Rating: | This book is absolutely essential for any historian interested or concerned with Islamicate societies. It is certainly more readable than Hodgeson's 3 volume Venture of Islam and on the same level of scholarly mastery. Consider this the product of a top historian reflecting upon a career of work within this field. Each paragraph is like a synthesis of ideas from across the field.
For me, this was an invaluable book for preparing for my minor field exam in medieval Islamic history (a graduate level exam). While it is never a replacement for more detailed studies, it serves as an "all you need to know" for many topics/ or a great launch pad for further research depending on what your purpose for reading is. There are more accessible books available for somebody only casually interested in the field, and I would be hard pressed to recommend it for in that case. Berkey's 'Formation of Islam' is a slimmer and easier to handle introduction, though his writing style is a tad dense even for somebody already introduced to the field.
Overall, I highly recommend it for any historian as a go to book. As my focus is Europe in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, it is perfect since enables me to have a huge field on hand without consulting numerous individual studies. As one reviewer remarked, though, this is most definitely a history book and so do not come looking for a poetic and emotional read. |
History is not pretty
| Customer Rating: | | This is an excellent book of history. It was not intended, I am sure, to be an explanation of "true Islam" as called for by another reviewer. I have a reservation or two about Lapidus's conclusions, but his presentation of the material stands as the best overview of the course of history from Arabia to the entire globe you can buy today. For a more general introduction to the religion of Islam, try Carl Ernst *Following Muhammad* or Frederick Denny *An Introduction to Islam* and THEN dig into history with this book. |
NOT for beginners or the mildly apathetic
| Customer Rating: | | This book is very comprehensive, which is either a blessing or curse depending on your background. As someone who knew nothing about Islam prior to reading this book, I was frequently overwhelmed by the mass of information that Lapidus has arranged. As you may notice by the sheer volume of this 970 page book, it is VERY wordy. Like most history texts, it is also very dry and devoid of emotion. The author does, however, provide a complex view of Islam that is fair and accurate. |
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