The Invisible Arab: The Promise and Peril of the Arab Revolutions
Christopher Dickey,Newsweek/TheDailyBeastMarwan Bishara'sThe Invisible Arabis the single most perceptive and accessible book I've read about the roots of revolt in the Middle East and the brave, chaotic, exciting and frightening new world they have begun to create.”Kirkus Reviews“A keen, journalistic look at the making of the Arab Spring and its ramifications.”Booklist“[Bishara] brings a long perspective on the factors that have led to the Arab Spring and the challenges ahead as resisters take up the task of securing freedom and justice and reconciling the emerging sense of nationalism with democracy. Bishara captures the spirit and energy of the young resisters and the violent reactions in Yemen, Libya, Bahrain, and Syria.”Shelf Awareness“Marwan Bishara’sThe Invisible Arabis a clear-headed and thought-provoking appraisal of the precarious but joyously hopeful place so many Arab nations find themselves after the ‘Arab Spring’ of 2010-2011. Bishara…is well-positioned to offer an intelligent appraisal of the forces that brought these revolutions to fragile birth, the political players involved and their capacity to retain power in a relatively benign fashion or succumb to the chaos and corruption that have plagued these nations in recent years….An engaging history of recent Arab revolutions, with a guardedly optimistic look at the future.”Huffington Post“An engaging new book…[Bishara] delivers a sweeping, provocative and at times entertaining tale, revolution jokes and all….The Invisible Arabis an insightful and absorbing read for inquiring minds, and a valuable tool for students of the Middle East. As globally resonant events continue to unfold in the region, a sequel is clearly in order.”Newsweek / Daily Beast“Avoiding the pitfall of seeing the revolution in isolation, Bishara elegantly charts how the potent forces of national-ism, Islamism, and Western intervention all mixed to create last year’s revolutions.”ID: International Dialogue, A Multidisciplinary Journal of World Affairs“[The Invisible Arab] is a must-read for students and scholars of the Middle East and the Arab world….The book does an excellent job of documenting the efforts at change, and suggesting how change might ultimately occur.” Wisconsin State Journal“There have been few events as consequential in recent history as the Arab Spring, and if one wants to understand its genesis, one should read this book. Engaging in a regionwide analysis with a concentration on Egypt and Tunisia, Bishara brings out little-known aspects of the tremors that have been felt around the world…. Bishara presents a clear-eyed assessment of the dictatorships that have blighted the Arab landscape.” Foreign Policy in Focus “Bishara tears down the Western media’s narrative of the Arab revolutions….[The Invisible Arab] helps make all that was invisible to the Western eye about the Arab Spring visible.” London School of Economics Review of Books“The Invisible Arab is a small book that pulls a lot of punches….Bishara’s analysis is thoughtful and detailed.” Foreign Affairs“[I]nformed and engaging…” Thinking Fits (blog)“Marwan Bishara’s The Invisible Arab… sings like a canary…. The Invisible Arab is at its most resonant when reconstructing the building blocs of Arab misery that pinned down much of the 20th century.” Library Journal, Starred Review“Remarkably informative and thorough.” Publisher’s Weekly“Bishara…provides a compelling and spirited history of the modern Arab nation, from colonial liberation to the recent revolutions….Fast-paced, impassioned, and eloquent.” Mason County News, Texas“[The Invisible Arab] is a brilliant analysis on how the Arabs broke their own psychological barrier of fear to kindle one of the first significant revolutionary transformations of the twenty-first century.” Tucson Citizen“This is a rich exploration of the history of the contemporary Arab world from the colonial period through the present period of liberation.”