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A Sultan in Palermo
A Novel
Series: The Islam Quintet
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Check link for latest rating. ( 770 ratings, 71 reviews)
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Ideal for readers of historical fiction interested in medieval history, political intrigue, and nuanced cultural narratives that challenge stereotypes and reveal complex identities.
The year is 1153. The Normans are ruling Siqqiliya, but Arab culture and language dominate the island and the court. Sultan Rujari surrounds himself with Muslim intellectuals, several concubines, and an administration presided over by gifted eunuchs. This fourth novel in Tariq Ali's "Islam Quintet" is set in medieval Palermo, a Muslim city.
Fourth book of the internationally acclaimed Islam Quintet
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Description
The fourth novel in Tariq Ali's 'Islam Quintet' charts the life and loves of the medieval cartographer Muhammed al-Idrisi. Torn between his close friendship with the sultan and his friends who are leaving the island or plotting a resistance to Norman rule, Idrisi finds temporary solace in the harem; but his conscience is troubled...
A Sultan in Palermo is a mythic novel in which pride, greed, and lust intermingle with resistance and greatness. Debunking myths about Oriental exoticism, it echoes a past that can still be heard today.
Series: The Islam Quintet
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Shadows of the Pomegranate Tree
Tariq Ali tells us the story of the aftermath of the fall of Granada by narrating a family sage of those who tried to survive after the collapse of their world. Ali is particularly deft at evoking what life must have been like for those doomed inhabitants, besieged on all sides by intolerant Christendom. "This is a novel that have...Paperback$3499Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Night of the Golden Butterfly
Night of the Golden Butterfly concludes the Islam Quintet—Tariq Ali’s much lauded series of historical novels, over twenty years in the writing, which has been translated into a dozen languages. Completing an epic panorama that began in fifteenth-century Moorish Spain, the concluding novel moves between the cities of the twenty-first century, from Lahore to London, from Paris to Beijing. The...Paperback$3499Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
The Book of Saladin
The Book of Saladin is the fictional memoir of Saladin, the Kurdish liberator of Jerusalem, as dictated to a Jewish scribe, Ibn Yakub. Saladin grants Ibn Yakub permission to talk to his wife and retainers so that he might present a full portrait in the Sultan's memoirs. A series of interconnected stories follows, tales brimming over with warmth, earthy humour,...Paperback$3499Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
The Stone Woman
Istanbul, 1899. The last great Islamic empire is in serious trouble. The family of Iskender Pasha, an Ottoman notable, has retired to its summer palace. Then a former tutor poses a question which the family has been refusing to confront for almost a century: "Your Ottoman Empire is like a drunken prostitute, neither knowing nor caring who will take her...Paperback$3499Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
A Sultan in Palermo
The fourth novel in Tariq Ali's 'Islam Quintet' charts the life and loves of the medieval cartographer Muhammed al-Idrisi. Torn between his close friendship with the sultan and his friends who are leaving the island or plotting a resistance to Norman rule, Idrisi finds temporary solace in the harem; but his conscience is troubled... A Sultan in Palermo is a...PaperbackSold Out
Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?
A richly woven tapestry compared to Naguib Mahfouz's works, the novel is praised for its intricate narrative and depth. Critics highlight its boisterous storytelling and exploration of secret histories, heretical poetry, and political disunity, creating a richly textured and marvellously paced tale of love, intrigue, and rebellion.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781781689301
Publisher: Verso Books
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 07 July 2015
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Verso Books
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 19.0mm
Width: 134.0mm
Height: 198.0mm
Weight: 303g
Pages: 256
About the Author
TARIQ ALI is a writer and filmmaker. He has written more than a dozen books on world history and politics--including Pirates of the Caribbean, Bush in Babylon, The Clash of Fundamentalisms and The Obama Syndrome--as well as five novels in his Islam Quintet series and scripts for the stage and screen. He is an editor of the New Left Review and lives in London.
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Tariq Ali tells us the story of the aftermath of the fall of Granada by narrating a family sage of those who tried to survive after the collapse of their world. Ali is particularly deft at evoking what life must have been like for those doomed inhabitants, besieged on all sides by intolerant Christendom. "This is a novel that have...Paperback$3499Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
A Sultan in Palermo
The fourth novel in Tariq Ali's 'Islam Quintet' charts the life and loves of the medieval cartographer Muhammed al-Idrisi. Torn between his close friendship with the sultan and his friends who are leaving the island or plotting a resistance to Norman rule, Idrisi finds temporary solace in the harem; but his conscience is troubled... A Sultan in Palermo is a...Paperback$3499Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Night of the Golden Butterfly
Night of the Golden Butterfly concludes the Islam Quintet—Tariq Ali’s much lauded series of historical novels, over twenty years in the writing, which has been translated into a dozen languages. Completing an epic panorama that began in fifteenth-century Moorish Spain, the concluding novel moves between the cities of the twenty-first century, from Lahore to London, from Paris to Beijing. The...Paperback$3499Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
The Book of Saladin
The Book of Saladin is the fictional memoir of Saladin, the Kurdish liberator of Jerusalem, as dictated to a Jewish scribe, Ibn Yakub. Saladin grants Ibn Yakub permission to talk to his wife and retainers so that he might present a full portrait in the Sultan's memoirs. A series of interconnected stories follows, tales brimming over with warmth, earthy humour,...Paperback$3499Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
The Stone Woman
Istanbul, 1899. The last great Islamic empire is in serious trouble. The family of Iskender Pasha, an Ottoman notable, has retired to its summer palace. Then a former tutor poses a question which the family has been refusing to confront for almost a century: "Your Ottoman Empire is like a drunken prostitute, neither knowing nor caring who will take her...Paperback$3499Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
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