Der Heilige Krieg der Barbaren: Die Kreuzzüge aus der Sicht der Araber

Endovelico

The Crusades as seen by the Arabs by Amin Maalouf offers us a fresh take on the crusades by centering the point of view in the Arab world during the crusading wars. Be at ease though, the book is not revisionist in the slightest nor does it try to romanticize the feats of any of the belligerents. The book is largely based on chronicles of the time and in doing so you, Amin manages to write a unique and valuable historical document book destilled to satisfy contemporary needs and questions regarding what went on during the time. The book indulges at times on rumours and popular stories of the time but always adverts the reader when doing so. Being that the book is filled with dates, battles, locations and names it ends up being more dense (even if more informative) than a usual Amin Historical Romance. Amin is honest about the possible margin of error and doesn't try to pass this book as an account of paramount rigor. Its definitely worth reading for its valuable perspective and input to todays politics and for its rich historical content covering all of the crusades.