Jihad: The Trail of Political Islam

Rating:
Summary: Definitive, but Readable
Review: While I am not familiar with the whole range of scholarship in this field, upon opening this volume one sense immediately that one is learning from one who knows. Kepel's book unostentatiosly belies a remarkable sense of mastery of his subject. The only fault I might find with it is its Arab and North Africa focus, which is perhaps not surprising coming from a French scholar. Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Central Asian Republics, and the islamic societies further east are given relatively little attention. Still, the book is a fantastic read for anyone interested in the politics within Islam in the second half of the 20th century.