Leila Al-Shami

Robin Yassin-Kassab

In 2011, many Syrians took to the streets of Damascus to demand the overthrow of the government of Bashar al-Assad. Today, much of Syria has become a warzone where foreign journalists find it almost impossible to report on life in this devastated land.Burning Country explores the horrific and complicated reality of life in present-day Syria with unprecedented detail and sophistication, drawing on new first-hand testimonies from opposition fighters, exiles lost in an archipelago of refugee camps, and courageous human rights activists among many others. These stories are expertly interwoven with a trenchant analysis of the brutalisation of the conflict and the militarisation of the uprising, of the rise of the Islamists and sectarian warfare, and the role of governments in Syria and elsewhere in exacerbating those violent processes.With chapters focusing on ISIS and Islamism, regional geopolitics, the new grassroots revolutionary organisations, and the worst refugee crisis since World War Two, Burning Country is a vivid and groundbreaking look at a modern-day political and humanitarian nightmare.

Syrians in Revolution and War

Burning Country

The road from Damascus

It is summer 2001, and Sami Traifi has gone to Damascus, escaping his fraying marriage and lack of direction -and hoping to find some kind of clarity away from his chaotic London existence. But instead he discovers a forgotten uncle in a gloomy back room and an ugly secret. On returning to London, things still aren't looking up. As Sami struggles to understand his wife's newly deepened faith, his brother-in-law's hip-hop Islamism and his father-in-law's need to see grandchildren, so his emotional and spiritual unravelling begins to accelerate. And the more he rebels, the closer he comes to betraying those he loves, edging ever nearer to the brink of losing everything... The Road from Damascusis an extraordinary novel of love, religion and revolution. It explores the weight of the past on the present and themes as big as commitment, faith and hope - and as fundamental as our need to believe in something bigger than ourselves, whatever that might be.

The Road from Damascus

Ziauddin Sardar

Malaysia and Indonesia are seen as bastions of liberal Islam. Is this really true or simply a widely held misconception about south-east Asian Muslims? What is the contribution of the Muslim archipelago to the world of Islam? What can we learn from Malaysian and Indonesian experiments in democracy? This issue of Critical Muslim addresses these questions by examining the politics, history, culture and religious traditions of Malaysia and Indonesia. Contributors include Merryl Wyn Davies on Malaysian multiculturalism, Luthfi Assyaukanie on Indonesia politics, Carool Kersten on the struggles of Indonesian intellectuals, Andre Vltchek on religion and tolerance in south-east Asia, Andi Achdian on Islam in Java, Ahmad Fuad Rahmat on the Malaysian intellectual guru Naguib Al-Attas, Shanon Shah on Malay Magic, Jo Kukathas on 'Malay-ness', Linda Christanty on literary stars of Indonesia, Rossie Indira on Indonesian pop music, and Nazry Bahrawi on reformist debates in south-east Asia. About Critical Muslim: A quarterly publication of ideas and issues showcasing groundbreaking thinking on Islam and what it means to be a Muslim in a rapidly changing, interconnected world. Each edition centers on a discrete theme, and contributions include reportage, academic analysis, cultural commentary, photography, poetry, and book reviews.

Muslim Archipelago

Critical Muslim 07

Merryl Wyn Davies unravels the paradox that is Malaysia and Indonesia, Ziauddin Sardar reads the history of Kuala Lumpur from the window of his apartment, Carool Kersten engages with a string of Indonesian intellectuals, Nazry Bahrawi reads some classic Southeast Asian texts, Ahmad Fuad Rahmat dissects a Malaysian demigod, Andre Vltchek thinks Indonesian Islam is anything but "tolerant" and "moderate", Shanon Shah dabbles with Malay magic, Rossie Indira laments the loss of classical Indonesian music, Jo Kukathas weeps at the emergence of religious intolerance in Malaysia, Linda Christanty ponders the genealogy of her (Muslim) name, and Vinay Lal questions Malaysia's claims to be a genuinely pluralistic society. Also in this issue: Iftikhar Salahuddin visits the Dome of the Rock, Hassan Mahamadallie is bowled over by a new biography of Malcolm X, Mohammad Moussa laughs at Christopher Hitchens, Samia Rahman watches "Argo", a short story by Nabeela M. Rehman, three poems by Marilyn Hacker and the top ten Malaysian obsessions.

Adam Roberts

Frank Cottrell-Boyce

Sarah Schofield

Toby Litt

Lucy Caldwell

Julian Gough

Claire Dean

Sean O'Brien

Stuart Evers

Martyn Bedford

Margaret Wilkinson

Zoe Lambert

Adam Marek

Joanna Quinn

Andy Hedgecock

K.J. Orr

Annie Kirby

Dinesh Allirajah

Computers are changing. Soon the silicon chip will seem like a clunky antique amid the bounty of more exotic processes on offer. Robots are changing too; material evolution and swarm intelligence are creating a new generation of devices that will diverge and disperse into a balanced ecosystem of humans and ‘robjects’ (robotic objects). Somewhere in between, we humans will have to change also… in the way we interact with technology, the roles we adopt in an increasingly ‘intelligent’ environment, and how we interface with each other. The driving motors behind many of these changes will be artificial life (A-Life) and unconventional computing. How exactly they will impact on our world is still an open question. But in the spirit of collective intelligence, this anthology brings together 38 scientists and authors, working in pairs, to imagine what life (and A-Life) will look like in the year 2070. Every kind of technology is imagined: from lie-detection glasses to military swarmbots, brain-interfacing implants to synthetically ‘grown’ skyscrapers, revolution-inciting computer games to synthetically engineered haute cuisine. All artificial life is here. Featuring scientific contributions from: Martyn Amos, J. Mark Bishop, Seth Bullock, Stephen Dunne, James Dyke, Christian Jantzen, Francesco Mondada, James D. O'Shea, Andrew Philippides, Lenka Pitonakova, Steen Rasmussen, Thomas S. Ray, Micah Rosenkind, James Snowdon, Susan Stepney, Germán Terrazas, Andrew Vardy and Alan Winfield. Supported by TRUCE (Training and Research in Unconventional Computation in Europe).

Stories From an A-Life Future

Beta-Life

AbdelWahab El-Affendi on Islamophobia and Orientalism in the age of liberal paranoia, Arun Kundnani on English Defense League and the rise of the far right in Europe, Vinay Lal on Hindus who love Hitler, Gordon Steffey on Christian fundamentalism, Fanar Haddad on the sectarian schisms in the Arab world, Gary McFarlane on Tottenham Riots, Farouk Peru on self loathing Muslims, Claire Chambers on 'Four Lions', Peter Clark on Bernard Lewis and Peter Moray on Irshad Manji. Plus a short story by Suhel Ahmed, six poems by Stéphane Chaumet, Anita Sethi's dangerous bus ride through Iran, Ten Top Techs for Muslim and Ziauddin Sardar on his pet hate: the beards of Islam.

Fear and Loathing

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Ziauddin Sardar questions the question mark that is always placed in front of Pakistan, Robin Yassin-Kassab asks why Pakistan has not imploded, Taimur Khan breaks bread with the gangsters and bookies of Karachi, Muhammad Idrees Ahmad revisits Peshawar, Mahvish Ahmad tracks down the separatist in Quetta, Ehsan Masood watches Pakistani television, Merryl Wyn Davies deconstructs 'imaginariums' of Pakistan, Aamer Hussein discusses Pakistani modern classic fiction, Bina Shah asks if there is boom in Pakistani literature, Bilal Tanweer listens to 'Coke Studio', Muneeza Shamsie discovers the literary secrets of her family, Taymiya R. Zaman overcomes her fear of talking about Pakistan, Ali Maraj assesses Imran Khan, Shazia Mirza tells rude jokes in Lahore, and a fake novel by Ibn-e-Safi is spotted in Bahwalnagar. Plus a new translation of an old short story by A R Khatoon, a new story by Yasir Shah, poems by Ghalib, John Siddique and Zehra Nigah, Atia Jilani's Quranic art, photographs by Ayesha Malik, and 'Ten Things We Love About Pakistan'. About Critical Muslim: A quarterly publication of ideas and issues showcasing groundbreaking thinking on Islam and what it means to be a Muslim in a rapidly changing, interconnected world. Each edition centers on a discrete theme, and contributions include reportage, academic analysis, cultural commentary, photography, poetry, and book reviews.

Pakistan?

In the inaugural issue of Critical Muslim: Ziauddin Sardar tries to understand the significance of what just happened in the Middle East, Robin Yassin-Kassab spends some quality time in Tahrir Square, Ashur Shamis dodges the bullets of Gaddafi's henchmen, Abdelwahab El-Affendi traces the roots of the uprisings, Anne Alexander tunes into the digital revolution, Fadia Faqir joins women protestors, Shadia Safwan asks how long could Assad last, Jamal Mahjoub contemplates futures of the Sudan, Jasmin Ramsey joins the activists in Tehran, and Jerry Ravetz ponders the significance of Ibn Khaldun to the Arab Spring. Also in this issue: Rachel Holmes visits the Palestinian Festival of Literature, S. Parvez Manzoor asks if Turkey is a good model for the Muslim world, Muhammad Idrees Ahmad is overwhelmed by leaks, Taus Makhacheva takes 'Affirmative Action', Aasia Nasir accuses Pakistan and Merryl Wyn Davies's 'last word' on Saudi women drivers. Plus a new short story from Bilal Tanweer and revolutionary poetry from Nizar Qabbani, Tawfiq Zayyad, Abul-Qasim al-Shabi, Ayat al-Qormezi and Naomi Foyle. About Critical Muslim: A quarterly publication of ideas and issues showcasing groundbreaking thinking on Islam and what it means to be a Muslim in a rapidly changing, interconnected world. Each edition centers on a discrete theme, and contributions include reportage, academic analysis, cultural commentary, photography, poetry, and book reviews.

The Arabs are Alive

Merryl Wyn Davies explores what we fear, AbdelWahab El-Affendi tackles Islamophobia and Orientalism in the age of liberal paranoia, Arun Kundnani charts the rise of the English Defense League and the far right in Europe, Vinay Lal is perplexed by Hindus who love Hitler, Gordon Steffey joins Christian fundamentalists at "Liberty University", Fanar Haddad is appaled by sectarian schisms in the Arab world, Gary McFarlane watches the Tottenham riots, Muhammad Idrees Ahmad traces the roots of Muslim anti-Semitism, Shanon Shah ponders why Muslims find it so difficult to talk about homosexuality, FArouk Peru wonders why he hates himself, Claire Chambers is unimpressed by the Orientalist guru Bernard Lewis and Peter Morrey offers a critical assessment of the Canadian Muslim writer, Irshad Manji. Plus a short story by Suhel Ahmed, six poems by Stephane Chaumet, Anita Sethi's dangerous bus ride through Iran, Michael Abboud's design of the so-called "Ground Zero" Mosque, top ten "please God" gadgets, and Ziauddin Sardar's topology of beards in Islam.

Ziauddin Sardar argues why Islamic reform is necessary, Bruce Lawrence sees Muslim cosmopolitanism as the future, Parvez Manzoor declares jihad on the idea of 'the political', Samia Rahman gets to the root of Muslim misogyny, Michael Muhammad Knight explains his taqwacore beliefs, Soha al-Jurf has problems with orthodoxy, Carool Kersten suggests that critical thinkers and reformers are often seen as heretics, and Ben Gidley on what keeps Muslims and Jews apart and what can bring them together. Also in this issue: Stuart Sim takes a sledgehammer to the 'profit motive', Andy Simons argues that Jazz is just as Muslim as it is American, Robin Yassin-Kabbab meets the new crop of Iraqi writers in Erbil, Said Adrus visits a Muslim cemetery in Woking, Ehsan Masood confesses he spent his youth reading the extremist writer Maryam Jameelah, Iftikar Malik dismisses pessimism about Pakistan, Hassan Mahamdallie explores what it means to be an American, Jerry Ravetz discovers the Arabic Maimonides, Vinay Lal assesses the legacy of Edward Said, and Merryl Wyn Davies takes a train to 9/11. Plus a brilliant new story from Aamer Hussein and four poems by the celebrated Mimi Khalvati. About Critical Muslim: A quarterly publication of ideas and issues showcasing groundbreaking thinking on Islam and what it means to be a Muslim in a rapidly changing, interconnected world. Each edition centers on a discrete theme, and contributions include reportage, academic analysis, cultural commentary, photography, poetry, and book reviews.

Robin Yassin-Kassab

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