Reviews
"Benjamin Stora's scholarly and readable text fills a major gap in English language literature about modern Algeria. This sensitive and detailed analysis of the past half century of turbulence in Algeria provides a wealth of information about the dynamics of Algerian society. Its reader will gain a rare perspective on the interplay of forces behind Algeria's current tragedy."-Richard W. Murphy, Council on Foreign Relations, "There is a wealth of reliable and useful historical information, including detailed treatments of the country's politics, economics, society, and foreign relations. Readers will get a good, straightforward account of the war for independence and the recent civil war, along with a broader feel for Algeria generally."--David Mednicoff, University of Massachusetts. African Studies Review, December 2002, Volume 45, Number 3, "Benjamin Stora is perhaps France's leading historian of Algeria. . . His book. . . encompasses the whole narrative of modern Algeria, from the first landings of the conquering French, through their ignominious departure and on to Algeria's present agony."-The Economist, September 2001, "Benjamin Stora has based his lean-bodied analysis of Algerian history. . . on a lifetime of engaged scholarship. . . Stora has written an unusually compelling book. . . He has passionately sought an undeluded understanding of the past. He notes that the proliferation of Algerian newspapers and publishers in the early 1990s led to Algerians becoming 'subjects of history and not just subjects of a regime'. His book, while destined to be contentious, largely succeeds in vindicating this honorable definition of the historian's enterprise."-Diana Wylie, Boston University, African Studies Center, "This book translates three of Stora's published works into one concise, scholarly, and welcome survey. . . . Accessible to the nonspecialist. . . . Highly recommended for all levels."--Choice, February 2002, Vol. 39, No. 6, "Stora has written a new introductory chapter on Algeria's colonial period (1830-1954) and revised the final section with up-to-date information, making this book a clear, detailed, rigorously factual, and up-to-date account of this troubled nation from 1830 down to the present day."--The Bookwatch, October 2001, "Benjamin Stora is perhaps France's leading historian of Algeria. . . His book. . . encompasses the whole narrative of modern Algeria, from the first landings of the conquering French, through their ignominious departure and on to Algeria's present agony."--The Economist, September 2001, "This is a remarkable book: simultaneously a clear, simple account of modern Algerian history that will be accessible to newcomers to Algerian affairs, and a subtle, sophisticated interpretation of recent events that will provoke and satisfy those who know the country well. Algeria's complex and tortured history has long seemed to be a challenge to capture and convey; Stora's masterful account makes it seem easy."--Lisa Anderson, Dean of the School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University, "This book translates three of Stora's published works into one concise, scholarly, and welcome survey. . . . Accessible to the nonspecialist. . . . Highly recommended for all levels."-Choice, February 2002, Vol. 39, No. 6, "Benjamin Stora has based his lean-bodied analysis of Algerian history. . . on a lifetime of engaged scholarship. . . Stora has written an unusually compelling book. . . He has passionately sought an undeluded understanding of the past. He notes that the proliferation of Algerian newspapers and publishers in the early 1990s led to Algerians becoming 'subjects of history and not just subjects of a regime'. His book, while destined to be contentious, largely succeeds in vindicating this honorable definition of the historian's enterprise."--Diana Wylie, Boston University, African Studies Center, "As one of France's leading historians of Algeria, and more broadly of French decolonization, Stora is well equipped to tell the story of these two terrible conflicts and of the thirty-year period that separates them, when the country was a one-party state struggling to create a post-colonial identity."--Roger Hardy. International Affairs, January 2002, "This is a remarkable book: simultaneously a clear, simple account of modern Algerian history that will be accessible to newcomers to Algerian affairs, and a subtle, sophisticated interpretation of recent events that will provoke and satisfy those who know the country well. Algeria's complex and tortured history has long seemed to be a challenge to capture and convey; Stora's masterful account makes it seem easy."-Lisa Anderson, Dean of the School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University, "Benjamin Stora's scholarly and readable text fills a major gap in English language literature about modern Algeria. This sensitive and detailed analysis of the past half century of turbulence in Algeria provides a wealth of information about the dynamics of Algerian society. Its reader will gain a rare perspective on the interplay of forces behind Algeria's current tragedy."--Richard W. Murphy, Council on Foreign Relations, As one of France's leading historians of Algeria, and more broadly of French decolonization, Stora is well equipped to tell the story of these two terrible conflicts and of the thirty-year period that separates them, when the country was a one-party state struggling to create a post-colonial identity., "As one of France's leading historians of Algeria, and more broadly of French decolonization, Stora is well equipped to tell the story of these two terrible conflicts and of the thirty-year period that separates them, when the country was a one-party state struggling to create a post-colonial identity."-Roger Hardy. International Affairs, January 2002, "Stora has written a new introductory chapter on Algeria's colonial period (1830-1954) and revised the final section with up-to-date information, making this book a clear, detailed, rigorously factual, and up-to-date account of this troubled nation from 1830 down to the present day."-The Bookwatch, October 2001
