Lesley Hazletonis an award-winning writer whose work focuses on the
intersection of religion, history, and politics. She reported on
the Middle East from Jerusalem for more than a dozen years, and has
written forTime,The New York Times,The New York Review of
Books,Harper's,The Nation, andThe New Republic, among others. Her
bookAfter the Prophetwas a finalist for a PEN Center USA Literary
Award, and she is the recipient ofThe Stranger's Genius in
Literature Award. Hazleton lives in Seattle.
For more information, visit- www.aftertheprophet.com.
accidentaltheologist.com
“Fascinating. . . . Lively and engaging. . . . Anyone seeking to
understand today’s Middle East can learn from this book. . . .
Hazleton not only recounts the facts behind the split but also
expertly uses centuries-old accounts to convey the depth of
emotional and spiritual associations bundled within a simple word
like ‘Karbala.’ . . . [She] deftly uses original sources, many
based on contemporaneous or nearly so oral accounts, to give life
and breath to figures familiar to every Muslim but unknown to most
non-Muslims.”
—Seattle Times
“Illuminating. . . . After the Prophet will be held up as a primer
for grasping the modern-day Middle East.”
—The Miami Herald
“Remarkable. . . . A story of human passion and consequence, told
with consummate skill. . . . [Hazleton] manages the not
inconsiderable feat of maintaining scholarly respect for her
subject while also showing a real fondness for the people at the
story’s heart—people who, we learn, were not unlike us, and whose
tale is directly linked to today’s newscast.”
—Dallas Morning News
“Thrilling in its depiction of long-ago events. . . . Passionately
and scrupulously done.”
—The Wall Street Journal
“As sectarian aggression flares in Iraq, Hazleton’s explanation of
its deep, entrenched roots is essential.”
—Christian Science Monitor
“A remarkable and respectful telling of the story of Islam—a tale
of power, intrigue, rivalry, jealousy, assassination, manipulation,
greed, and faith that would have made Machiavelli shudder (had he
read it), but above all it is a very human story, told in a
wonderfully novelistic style that puts most other, often dreary,
explanations of the Shia-Sunni divide to shame.”
—Hooman Majd, author of The Ayatollah Begs to Differ
“A profound story masterfully told. . . . An exceptional book.”
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“A page turner that reads like an incredible cross between a
suspense thriller and a fairy tale. All the elements of a fantastic
story are here: intense spirituality; murder, violence, and
bloodshed; dynastic power struggles; poison and atrocities; wife
murdering husband; slave killing caliph; inspiring heroes;
dastardly villains; heresy and apostasy. . . . The implications of
[After the Prophet] are huge. . . . A superbly written first step
for the uninformed to become knowledgeable. Don’t miss it.”
—The Fredericksburg Lance-Star
“Hazleton’s gripping narrative of the rise of Islam and the
subsequent split between Shia and Sunni branches paints a picture
that is far more epic, nuanced, and tragic. . . . Hazleton unspools
this historically tangled tale with assurance and admirable
clarity.”
—The Bellingham Herald (Washington)
“My only regret is that Hazleton didn’t write this terrific and
necessary book in time to enlighten Donald Rumsfeld, Paul
Wolfowitz, et al., before they so unwisely invaded a land, and a
religious culture, of which they were reprehensibly ignorant. I
hope they read it now, with proper rue. Meanwhile, the rest of us
can take pleasure in Hazleton’s vigorously drawn characters, her
lucid storytelling, and her enthralling, imaginative grasp of the
roots and consequences of the Sunni-Shia divide.”
—Jonathan Raban, author of My Holy War and Surveillance
“A new masterpiece. . . . Thrillingly and intelligently distills
one of the most consequential trains of events in all history.”
—Booklist (starred review)
“Whether or not George Bush even knew there were such things as
Shias and Sunnis before invading Iraq, after reading Lesley
Hazleton’s gripping book no one will be able to plead ignorance
about why the split between them happened and what it all
means.”
—Alan Wolfe, Director, Boisi Center for Religion and American
Public Life, and author of The Future of Liberalism
“Hazleton succeeds in bringing out the truly epic character of the
Shia-Sunni split, telling the story with great empathy. The general
Western reader will come away from this book with a newfound
respect for the depth and power of the early schism in Islam and of
what happened at Karbala.”
—Wilferd Madelung, Laudian Professor of Arabic, University of
Oxford, and author of The Succession to Muhammad
"Fascinating. . . . Lively and engaging. . . . Anyone seeking to
understand today's Middle East can learn from this book. . . .
Hazleton not only recounts the facts behind the split but also
expertly uses centuries-old accounts to convey the depth of
emotional and spiritual associations bundled within a simple word
like 'Karbala.' . . . [She] deftly uses original sources, many
based on contemporaneous or nearly so oral accounts, to give life
and breath to figures familiar to every Muslim but unknown to most
non-Muslims."
-Seattle Times
"Illuminating. . . . After the Prophet will be held up as a
primer for grasping the modern-day Middle East."
-The Miami Herald
"Remarkable. . . . A story of human passion and consequence, told
with consummate skill. . . . [Hazleton] manages the not
inconsiderable feat of maintaining scholarly respect for her
subject while also showing a real fondness for the people at the
story's heart-people who, we learn, were not unlike us, and whose
tale is directly linked to today's newscast."
-Dallas Morning News
"Thrilling in its depiction of long-ago events. . . . Passionately
and scrupulously done."
-The Wall Street Journal
"As sectarian aggression flares in Iraq, Hazleton's explanation of
its deep, entrenched roots is essential."
-Christian Science Monitor
"A remarkable and respectful telling of the story of Islam-a tale
of power, intrigue, rivalry, jealousy, assassination, manipulation,
greed, and faith that would have made Machiavelli shudder (had he
read it), but above all it is a very human story, told in a
wonderfully novelistic style that puts most other, often dreary,
explanations of the Shia-Sunni divide to shame."
-Hooman Majd, author of The Ayatollah Begs to Differ
"A profound story masterfully told. . . . An exceptional book."
-Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"A page turner that reads like an incredible cross between a
suspense thriller and a fairy tale. All the elements of a fantastic
story are here: intense spirituality; murder, violence, and
bloodshed; dynastic power struggles; poison and atrocities; wife
murdering husband; slave killing caliph; inspiring heroes;
dastardly villains; heresy and apostasy. . . . The implications of
[After the Prophet] are huge. . . . A superbly written first
step for the uninformed to become knowledgeable. Don't miss
it."
-The Fredericksburg Lance-Star
"Hazleton's gripping narrative of the rise of Islam and the
subsequent split between Shia and Sunni branches paints a picture
that is far more epic, nuanced, and tragic. . . . Hazleton unspools
this historically tangled tale with assurance and admirable
clarity."
-The Bellingham Herald (Washington)
"My only regret is that Hazleton didn't write this terrific and
necessary book in time to enlighten Donald Rumsfeld, Paul
Wolfowitz, et al., before they so unwisely invaded a land, and a
religious culture, of which they were reprehensibly ignorant. I
hope they read it now, with proper rue. Meanwhile, the rest of us
can take pleasure in Hazleton's vigorously drawn characters, her
lucid storytelling, and her enthralling, imaginative grasp of the
roots and consequences of the Sunni-Shia divide."
-Jonathan Raban, author of My Holy War and
Surveillance
"A new masterpiece. . . . Thrillingly and intelligently distills
one of the most consequential trains of events in all history."
-Booklist (starred review)
"Whether or not George Bush even knew there were such things as
Shias and Sunnis before invading Iraq, after reading Lesley
Hazleton's gripping book no one will be able to plead ignorance
about why the split between them happened and what it all
means."
-Alan Wolfe, Director, Boisi Center for Religion and American
Public Life, and author of The Future of Liberalism
"Hazleton succeeds in bringing out the truly epic character of the
Shia-Sunni split, telling the story with great empathy. The general
Western reader will come away from this book with a newfound
respect for the depth and power of the early schism in Islam and of
what happened at Karbala."
-Wilferd Madelung, Laudian Professor of Arabic, University of
Oxford, and author of The Succession to Muhammad
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