This now-classic work features a new introduction in which Nestor Garcia Canclini calls for a cultural politics to contain the damaging effects of globalization and responds to relevant theoretical developments over the past decade.Garcia Canclini questions whether Latin America can compete in a global marketplace without losing its cultural identity. He moves with ease from the ideas of Gramsci and Foucault to economic analysis, from appraisals of the exchanges between Octavio Paz and Jorge Luis Borges to Chicano film and grafitti. Hybrid Cultures at once clarifies the development of democratic institutions in Latin America and reveals that the most destructive ideological trends are still going strong.

    After abandoning his beloved Mariam when she falls pregnant, and escaping her brothers' bullets, Ibrahim abandons his own ideals and dreams of becoming a novelist, opting instead to follow his father's wishes and seek wealth and commercial success abroad. Thirty years later, lonely and disillusioned, Ibrahim returns to Ramallah to retrace the past he tried to leave behind. He sets out on a long and frustrating quest to track down Mariam, which takes him from the West Bank to Israel. Along the way he encounters his son, Michael, a young man with spiritual powers that enable him to see what is unknown and find what has gone missing. Moving and lyrical, Khalifeh's novel weaves religious and political symbolism into a story of love and loss. At its core is Ibrahim's--the Palestinian's--agonizing but unrelenting search for a home.

    Christianity, Judaism and Islam all had their genesis in the region but with them came not just civilisation and religion but also some of the great struggles of history. A Short History of the Middle East makes sense of the shifting sands of Middle Eastern History, beginning with the early cultures of the area and moving on to the Roman and Persian Empires; the growth of Christianity; the rise of Islam; the invasions from the east; Genghis Khan's Mongol hordes; the Ottoman Turks and the rise of radicalism in the modern world symbolised by Islamic State.

    Featuring pathbreaking analyses of the production of nature and the politics of scale, Smith's work anticipated many of the uneven contours that now mark neoliberal globalization. This third edition features an afterword updating the analysis for the present day.

    In this comprehensive and engaging reference book, Rossi offers a clear analysis of the issues playing out in the Middle East, delving into each country?s history, politics, economy, and religions. Having traveled through the area over the past year, she exposes firsthand the U.S.?s geopolitical moves and how our presence has affected the region?s economic and political development. Topics include: · Why Iran is viewed as a threat by most Middle East countries · What resource is more important than petroleum in regional power plays · What?s really behind the fighting between Sunni and Shia · How Saudi Arabia inadvertently feeds the violence in Iraq and beyond · How monarchies like those in Jordan and Qatar are more open and progressive than the so-called republics With answers that will surprise many Americans, and covering a vast history and cultural complexity that will fascinate any student of the world, What Every American Should Know About the Middle East is a must-read introduction to the most critical region of the twenty-first century.

    He was a seasoned infantryman and senior Army NCO with a burning desire to deploy to Afghanistan and join the fight against Taliban and Al Qaeda forces bent on keeping American influence out of the Middle East. Like many Americans Chad felt personally stricken by the attacks on 9/11 and he yearned to take part in his Nation's retaliation for the atrocities planned within the sanctity of Afghanistan's borders. When the opportunity arose to deploy as a Combat Advisor to an Afghan Infantry Battalion he seized the opportunity and headed to Fort Riley, Kansas to attend U.S. Army Combat Advisor School. After months of intensive training in Afghan customs, culture and language in addition to tactical training on the direction of close air support and artillery Rickard was dropped into a hotbed of action in Afghanistan's Khost Province. In Khost, former home to one of Osama Bin Laden's largest terror training camps, Rickard's team went toe to toe with Haqqani Taliban on numerous occasions, often leaving a staggering body count in their wake. In Mayhem 337, Rickard powerfully recounts his experiences during a nine month period of intense combat deep in the mountains of Eastern Afghanistan. His graphic account guides you through intense combat from the streets of Khost City, to deadly mountain warfare while based at an austere combat outpost. He vividly describes the sights and sounds of battle as well as the heartbreaking aftermath of fallen comrades. From IED laden roads to air assault missions and hostage standoffs, Rickard's story leaves nothing to the imagination. His riveting memoir brings recognition and honor to the Embedded Transition Team legacy that is but a footnote in U.S. military history.

    In a bid to reassess her life, she heads off to the only place she has ever felt content - her brother’s farmhouse retreat in rural France.Marcie isn’t the only one looking to escape. Ex-soldier Will hopes the gentle pace of French life will help to banish the ghosts of his past and offer him the fresh start he desires.However, all is not what it seems at The Retreat. Fuelled by a string of strange happenings and local rumours, Will and Marcie are pushed together as they try to discover who or what is behind it all. In so doing, they are faced with a moral dilemma and question if doing wrong is doing right?The French Retreat is a story of human compassion, hope and love.

    First responder, Detective Chief Inspector Quinnborne, defies orders and hunts for the weapon’s unhinged genius creator. The authorities label Quinnborne a traitor, but when the nanotechnology spirals out of control, his grit and bloody-minded determination become humankind’s last thin hope of surviving a weapon of mass destruction that can be deployed at will and against which there is no defense.

    

    Indeed, Pakistan has meant different things to different people since its birth seventy years ago. Armed with nuclear weapons and dominated by the military and militants, it is variously described around the world as ‘dangerous’, ‘unstable’, ‘a terrorist incubator’ and ‘the land of the intolerant’.Much of Pakistan’s dysfunction is attributable to an ideology tied to religion and to hostility with the country out of which it was carved out – India. But 95 per cent of Pakistan’s 210 million people were born after Partition, as Pakistanis, and cannot easily give up on their home.In his new book, Husain Haqqani, one of the most important commentators on Pakistan in the world today, calls for a bold re-conceptualization of the country. Reimagining Pakistan offers a candid discussion of Pakistan’s origins and its current failings, with suggestions for reconsidering its ideology, and identifies a national purpose greater than the rivalry with India.

    Dividing the time into three periods: 600-900, 900-1500 and 1500-1800, they set the artistic development in each era within its historical context and use art as a window into Islamic culture. Written in a lively and accessible style, and illustrated throughout with photographs, maps and plans, the book captures the essence of Islamic culture as expressed in its buildings, books and applied arts, and provides an essential introduction to the subject for both the student and the general reader.

    Egypt’s 2011 revolt was no exception. The military’s abandonment of Mubarak—a turning point for the revolt—confounded many observers, who assumed that the leader and the generals stood or fell together. The officers, it was thought, ruled from behind the scenes and simply swapped the figures in the spotlight to preserve the status quo.In a challenge to this conventional view, Hazem Kandil presents the revolution as the latest episode in an ongoing power struggle between the three components of Egypt’s authoritarian regime: the military, the security services, and the political apparatus. A detailed study of the interactions within this invidious triangle over six decades of war, conspiracy, and sociopolitical transformation, Soldiers, Spies, and Statesmen is the first systematic analysis of how Egypt metamorphosed from a military into a police state—and what that means for the future of its revolution.

    Poor people began to construct their own communities on unused urban lands, creating an infrastructure----roads, electricity, running water, garbage collection, and shelters----all their own. As the Iranian government attempted to evict these illegal settlers, they resisted----fiercely and ultimately successfully. This is the story of their economic and political strategies.

    Her new life is strange and confusing and sometimes frightening. Amanda can barely understand Arabic and the treatment of the women of the family seems wrong to a girl raised in Wales. To add to her problems, Mohammed proves to be verbally and physically abusive - especially once they have their own flat away from the protection of the wider family. Somehow Amanda must escape, but not without her children.

     And the Australian government does not pay ransoms.After more than a year of stalled negotiations, Nigel's family takes matters into their own hands.  They go against government advice, scarifying their livelihoods, their houses and personal lives to bring the hostages home.  Meanwhile, the kidnappers are losing patience.  Brutalised, shackled, not knowing when or how the situation will end, Nigel faces the fight of his life.This is a story about what it takes to survive, and how far a family will go for freedom, whatever the price.