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The Prophet and Pharaoh: Muslim Extremism in Egypt

The author has written prolifically on Islam and the role of religion in contemporary violence.  In this book, initially published in 1985, he focuses on Egypt and the development of Muslim extremism in that country as a way of shining a spotlight on one small part of a complex range of phenomena related to the 'Islamicist movement'.  He chooses Egypt as an excellent example of the development of Islamicist thought and practice through a number of ideologues and movements upto the assassination of President Sadat in 1981. The result is a useful study on Egypt, on the development of many of the ideas that inform contemporary Islamist movements as well as a brief insight into some key thinkers such as Sayyid Qutb. The book has been re-issued a couple of times, the latest edition being 2003, although this review is based on the 1985 version which is widely available.


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