Syria: A Recent History
John McHugo (Author)
New!: $11.07 (as of 01/15/2015 23:23 PST)
Syria
Al-Baghdadi's Kitab al-Tabikh was for a long time the only medieval Arabic Cookery book known to the English-speaking world, thanks to A.J Arberry's path-breaking 1939 translation as `A Baghdad Cookery Book' which was re-issued by Prospect Books in 2001 in Medieval Arab Cookery. For centuries, it has been the favourite Arab cookery book of the Turks. The original manuscript is still in Istanbul, and at some point a Turkish sultan commissioned a very handsome copy which can still be seen in The British Library in London. In the twentieth century the Iraqui scholar, Daoud Chelebi, produced a modern transcription which served as the basis for Arberry's translation. Charles Perry has re-visited the manuscript and discovered many possible errors and amendments that affect the interpretation of these essential recipes for the understanding of medieval Arab cookery. He has produced a new Enlish translation incorporating these ammendments and fully annotating his variations with the 'authorised' version. Scholars will now have a definitive text on which to work. They will also have this text in an inexpensive and handy format, just the thing for a learned lady's handbag.
Collusion between business communities and the state can lead to a measure of security for those in power, but this kind of interaction often limits new development. In Syria, state-business involvement through informal networks has contributed to an erratic economy. With unique access to private businessmen and select state officials during a critical period of transition, this book examines Syria's political economy from 1970 to 2005 to explain the nation's pattern of state intervention and prolonged economic stagnation.
As state income from oil sales and aid declined, collusion was a bid for political security by an embattled regime. To achieve a modicum of economic growth, the Syrian regime would develop ties with select members of the business community, reserving the right to reverse their inclusion in the future. Haddad ultimately reveals that this practice paved the way for forms of economic agency that maintained the security of the regime but diminished the development potential of the state and the private sector.
Al-Baghdadi's Kitab al-Tabikh was for long the only medieval Arabic Cookery book known to the English-speaking world, thanks to A.J Arberry's path-breaking 1939 translation as `A Baghdad Cookery Book' which was re-issued by Prospect Books in 2001 in Medieval Arab Cookery. For centuries, it has been the favourite Arab cookery book of the Turks. The original manuscript is still in Istanbul, and at some point a Turkish sultan commissioned a very handsome copy which can still be seen in The British Library in London. In the twentieth century the Iraqui scholar, Daoud Chelebi, produced a modern transcription which served as the basis for Arberry's translation. Charles Perry has re-visited the manuscript and discovered many possible errors and amendments that affect the interpretation of these essential recipes for the understanding of medieval Arab cookery. He has produced a new English translation incorporating these amendments and fully annotating his variations with the 'authorised' version. Scholars will now have a definitive text on which to work. They will also have this text in an inexpensive and handy format, just the thing for a learned lady's handbag.