The Fall and Rise of the Islamic State »

Noah Feldman is Bemis Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. He is a contributing writer for the "New York Times Magazine" and an adjunct senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. He is the author of "Divided by God", "What We Owe Iraq" (Princeton), and "After Jihad".

"In Feldman's fascinating intellectual journey through history, Islamic law, and modern politics, you will discover the power of 'justice.' It is both the driving force behind efforts in the Arab world to democratize, constitutionalize, and modernize Islam, and a weapon for the worst kind of abuses and authoritarianism. Feldman's book works through these tensions between theology and power with consummate dispassion and scholarship."--Leslie H. Gelb, president emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations and former New York Times columnist

"Noah Feldman has raised a central discussion in Islam about the nature of the Islamic state that is too often missed or misunderstood. Regardless of ideological or religious affiliation, the reader needs to engage with Feldman's clear and sympathetic arguments in order to make sense of what is happening in the Muslim world today."--Akbar S. Ahmed, American University

"Scholarly and sophisticated yet highly accessible, this book makes an extremely important contribution to contemporary discussions of both Muslim politics and Islamic law. Feldman's work provides a historical depth that has often been lacking in studies of law and constitutionalism in modern Muslim societies."--Muhammad Qasim Zaman, author of The Ulama in Contemporary Islam

The Washington Post - Geneive Abdo

Feldman is an ardent constitutionalist trying to show how, in theory at least, his democratic vision could be compatible with another country's traditions and institutions.

Introduction 1
PART I: What Went Right? 17
PART II: Decline and Fall 57
PART III: The Rise of the New Islamic State 103
Conclusion 147
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 153
NOTES 155
INDEX 177