ajiss 26-2-final-1-obay.qxp The Maghrib in the New Century: Identity, Religion, and Politics Bruce Maddy-Weitzman and Daniel Zisenwine, eds. Gainesville: University Press of Forida, 2007. 278 pages. The Maghrib in the New Century: Identity, Religion, and Politics offers a timely addition to the literature on North Africa. Edited by Bruce Maddy- Weitzman and Daniel Zisenwine, this collection explores the socioeconomic and political challenges facing North Africa in the twenty-first century. The editors have divided the book into four sections broadly concerned with his- tory and identity; the status of the ruling regimes in the face of processes such as globalization and Islamism; economic development; and the North African presence in France. Benjamin Stora’s introduction to the collection neatly sums up many of the issues this region faces, including the aftereffects of colonialism, the fall- out from the Algerian civil war, identity movements and the questioned legitimacy of ruling regimes, emigration, terrorism, and battles over women’s status. In the first section, Mickael Bensadoun analyzes Moroccan national identity under the nascent rule of Mohammed VI. This is followed by Robert Mortimer’s examination of Algerian identity through literature. Maddy- Weitzman’s essay provides an insightful discussion of how Berber/Amazigh activists have sought to construct Amazigh identity in both Algeria and Morocco by reinterpreting history. The collection segues into a longer section focusing on the political challenges facing the region’s dictatorial regimes, particularly in Algeria and Morocco. In the fallout from the Algerian civil war, analyses of the current situation in Algeria by Gideon Gera, Louisa Aït-Hamadouche, and Yahia Zoubir are particularly welcome. Zisenwine analyzes the first eight years of Mohammed VI’s rule, while Michael Willis gives a thorough overview of that country’s Islamist movements. Finally, in one of the few pieces to con- centrate on Tunisia, Michele Penner Angrist offers a number of astute expla- nations for the strength of the Ben Ali regime. The book’s final section considers current economic conditions. Morocco and Tunisia’s responses to economic reforms, such as structural adjustment programs and investment strategies, are usefully compared in an essay by Paul Rivlin. The very different situation of Algeria’s rentier economy is the subject of an essay by Ahmed Aghrout and Michael Hodd, who argue that the slow pace of privatization efforts and the transition to 120 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 26:2 ajiss 26-2-final-1-obay.qxp 6/9/2010 4:08 PM Page 120 PDF created with pdfFactory Pro trial version www.pdffactory.com http://www.pdffactory.com http://www.pdffactory.com a market economy must accelerate in order to avoid further social and political instability. Finally, Paul Silverstein outlines how political events taking place in both Algeria and France are part of larger transnational processes linking not only the two nation-states but also North Africa and Europe as a whole. His article traces the various forms of Algerian immi- grant politicization throughout the history of les Beurs in France, as well as the concomitant effect of this politicization on the political situation in Algeria. These well-researched essays offer a very thorough analysis of how actors involved in nation-state politics, economic processes, and social move- ments jostle for position in determining North Africa’s future. This collection is particularly strong on the issue of Amazigh history, identity, and politiciza- tion, especially in Maddy-Weitzman’s and Silverstein’s essays. Economic and political science perspectives are well represented here, although as an anthropologist I would have liked to see more essays examining everyday life, for example, how the average citizen experiences political or ethnic mobilization and the effects of structural adjustment programs. Also, although several contributors mention the women’s movement and challen- ges to personal status codes across the region, no essays focus specifically on women and gender issues. Taken as a whole, the articles fit together nicely, with thematic overlap and complementary arguments that draw a comprehensive portrait of the region’s socioeconomic and political conditions. Though more work focus- ing on Tunisia would have been useful, the authors of these essays do an excellent job of discussing the many challenges North Africa faces in the twenty-first century. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that most of the contributors consider their subject matter in the broader context of global- ization, by which I mean that nation-states are not viewed as entities sepa- rate from the wider processes in which they are enmeshed. For example, the effects of emigration and global communications technology on the con- struction of local identities (political, ethnic, religious, or otherwise) are discussed in a number of essays. The collection is, therefore, very much of- the-moment. It will be a useful text not only for researchers and policymak- ers working on this region but also for social science courses on North Africa. Rachel Newcomb Assistant Professor of Anthropology Rollins College, Winter Park, Florida Book Reviews 121 ajiss 26-2-final-1-obay.qxp 6/9/2010 4:08 PM Page 121 PDF created with pdfFactory Pro trial version www.pdffactory.com http://www.pdffactory.com http://www.pdffactory.com