{"product_id":"holy-lands-reviving-pluralism-in-the-middle-east-paperback","title":"Holy Lands: Reviving Pluralism in the Middle East - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eNicolas Pelham\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eHow did the world's most tolerant region become the least harmonious place on the planet?\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe news from the Middle East these days is bad. Whatever hopes people may have for the region are being dashed over and over, in country after country. Nicolas Pelham, a veteran correspondent for \u003ci\u003eThe Economist\u003c\/i\u003e, has seen much of the tragedy first hand, but in \u003ci\u003eHoly Lands\u003c\/i\u003e he presents a strikingly original and startlingly optimistic argument. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe Middle East was notably more tolerant than Western Europe during the nineteenth century, because the Ottoman Empire permitted a high degree of religious pluralism and self-determination within its vast borders. European powers broke up the empire and tried to turn it into a collection of secular nation-states; it was a spectacular failure. Rulers turned religion into a force for nationalism and the result has been ever increasing sectarian violence. The solution, Pelham argues, is to accept the Middle East for the deeply religious region it is, and try to revive its tradition of pluralism. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eHoly Lands\u003c\/i\u003e is a work of vivid reportage--from Turkey and Iraq, Israel and Palestine, Abu Dhabi and Dubai, Bahrain and Jordan--that is animated by a big idea. It makes a region that is all too familiar from news reports feel fresh.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eNicolas Pelham\u003c\/b\u003e has written about the Middle East since 1992. He began as the editor of \u003ci\u003eMiddle East Times\u003c\/i\u003e from Cairo before joining the BBC Arabic Service. He covered the Algerian civil war and the caprice of Colonel Qaddafi as the BBC's correspondent in Rabat. In 2002 he joined the \u003ci\u003eFinancial Times\u003c\/i\u003e reporting on the downfall of first Saddam Hussein and then the American protectorate in Baghdad. Since 2010, he has reported on the region's collapse for \u003ci\u003eThe Economist\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe New York Review of Books\u003c\/i\u003e. He is the author of two previous books, \u003ci\u003eA New Muslim Order\u003c\/i\u003e (2008) on Arab Shiite rule, and \u003ci\u003eA History of the Middle East\u003c\/i\u003e (2010) with Peter Mansfield. He lives in London with his wife and three children.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 184\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.6 x 7.4 x 5 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e April 12, 2016\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51765568930080,"sku":"9780990976349","price":13.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/ba9964b2c3b44a70d27f690e3b389239.webp?v=1780273976","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/holy-lands-reviving-pluralism-in-the-middle-east-paperback","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}