Reviews

Gordon B. Smith, Soviet Politics: Continuity and Contradiction. Basingstoke and London: Macmillan Education, 1988. xi + 388 pp. £30.00 h/b, £8.95 p/b.

Daniel Thorniley, The Rise and Fall of the Soviet Rural Communist Party. 1927 39. London: Macmillan Press, 1988, xiii + 246 pp., £29.50.

Zenovia A. Sochor, Revolution and Culture: The Bogdanov‐Lenin Controversy, Cornell University Press, 1988, $32.95 ($29.95 USA and Canada.

Robert Edelman, Proletarian Peasants. The Revolution of 1905 in Russia's Southwest. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1987, xv + 195 pp., no price.

Robert W. Thurston, Liberal City, Conservative State: Moscow and Russia's Urban Crisis, 1906 1914. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987, viii + 266 pp., £27.50.

Douglas R. Weiner, Models of Nature: Ecology, Conservation, and Cultural Revolution in Soviet Russia. Bloomington and Indianapolis, Indiana University Press, 1988, xiv + 312 pp., $35.00.

Werner G. Hahn, Democracy in a Communist Party: Poland's experience since 1980. New York: Columbia University Press, 1987, xxv + 368 pp., $42.00.

Jaroslav Bilocerkowycz, Soviet Ukrainian Dissent: a Study of Political Alienation. Boulder: Westview Press, 1988, xii + 242 pp., $27.50 p/b.

Petro R. Sodol, UPA: They fought Hitler and Stalin, New York: Committee for the World Convention and Reunion of Soldiers in the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, 1987, 128 pp., $12.00.

Bruce McFarlane, Yugoslavia: Politics, Economics and Society. London and New York: Pinter Publishers, 1988, xxii + 240 pp., £25.00 h/b., £8.95 p/b.     

B. Reviews: general

EARLY ISLAM: COLLECTED ARTICLES. By W. MONTGOMERY WATT. Edinburgh, Edinburgh University Press, 1990. xi, 207pp.

THE KINGDOM OF CYPRUS AND THE CRUSADES 1191–1374. By PETER W. EDBURY. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1991. xvi, 241 pp. £27.50 (hb).

MAMLOUKS, OTTOMANS ET PORTUGAIS EN MER ROUGE: L'AFFAIRE DE DJEDDA EN 1517. By JEAN‐LOUIS BACQUE‐GRAMMONT & ANNE KR(ELL. (Supplément aux Annales islamologiques, Cahier no.12). Le Caire, Publication de l'Institut français d'Archéologie orientale, 1988. 113 pp. 2 sketches, 4 pages of maps, 1 pull‐out table.

A SHI'ITE PILGRIMAGE TO MECCA 1885–1886: THE SAFARNAMEH OF MIRZA MOHAMMAD HOSAYN FARAHANI. By MIRZA MOHAMMAD HOSAYN FARAHANI, ed., translated and annotated by HAFEZ FARMAYAN and ELTON L. DANIEL. London, Saqi Books, 1991. xxii, 380pp. £29.95 (hb).

ISLAMIC REFORM: POLITICS AND SOCIAL CHANGE IN LATE OTTOMAN SYRIA. By DAVID DEAN COMMINS. Oxford/New York, Oxford University Press, 1990. 199pp.

RIYADH: THE OLD CITY. By WILLIAM FACEY. London, Immel, 1992. 370 + 14pp., 17 maps and plans, 94 illustrations. £29.95.

THE STUDY OF ARABIC IN MALTA, 1632 TO 1915. By DIONISIUS AGIUS. Translated from the Maltese by Vincenz P. Borg. Revised and edited by Francine Geraci. Louvain, Peeters, 1990. xii, 52pp. 3 illustrations.

ARAB VOICES: THE HUMAN RIGHTS DEBATE IN THE MIDDLE EAST. By KEVIN DWYER. London, Routledge, 1991. 245 pp. $12.95.

SUPERPOWERS AND CLIENT STATES IN THE MIDDLE EAST: THE IMBALANCE OF INFLUENCE. Edited by MOSHE EFRAT and JACOB BERCOVITCH. London, Routledge, 1991. 272 pp.

STATECRAFT IN THE MIDDLE EAST: OIL, HISTORICAL MEMORY AND POPULAR CULTURE. Edited by ERIC DAVIS and NICOLAS GAVRIELIDES. Miami, Florida International University Press, 1991. 274 pp. $30.76 (hb), $13.82 (pb).

TRIBE AND STATE IN THE MIDDLE EAST. Edited by PHILIP S. KHOURY and JOSEPH KOSTINER. London, Taurus, 1991. 352pp. £35.

HONOR AND GRACE IN ANTHROPOLOGY. Edited by J.G. PERISTIANY and JULIAN PITT‐RIVERS. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1991. xiii, 260pp., 11 pp. illustrations. £35.00 (hb).

THE MODERN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL HISTORY OF THE MIDDLE EAST IN ITS WORLD CONTEXT. Edited by GEORGES SABAGH. (Tenth Giorgio Levi Delia Vida Biennial Conference.) Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1989. 161pp.

ISLAMIC FINANCIAL MARKETS. Edited by RODNEY WILSON. London, Routledge, 1990. 242 pp.

BATISSEURS ET BUREAUCRATES: INGENIEURS ET SOCIETE AU MAGHREB ET AU MOYEN ORIENT. Edited by ELIZABETH LONGUENESSE. (Collection Etudes sur le Monde Arabe, 4.) Lyon, Maison de l'Orient Mediterranéen, 1991. 437pp.

POLITICS AND ECONOMY IN JORDAN. By RODNEY WILSON. London, Routledge, 1991. xiv, 243pp. £35.00.

TRIBES WITH FLAGS: A DANGEROUS PASSAGE THROUGH THE CHAOS OF THE MIDDLE EAST. By CHARLES GLASS. New York, Atlantic Monthly Press, 1990. US$22.95 (cloth).

PITY THE NATION: LEBANON AT WAR. By ROBERT FISK. Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1991. xix, 662pp. Maps. £6.99 (pb).

WHO'S AT THE HELM? LESSONS OF LEBANON. By RAYMOND TANTER. Boulder, Westview Press, 1990. x, 262pp. Maps.

RELIGION AND CUSTOM IN A MUSLIM SOCIETY: THE BERTI OF SUDAN. By LADISLAV HOLY. (Cambridge Studies in Social and Cultural Anthropology, 78.) Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1991. xi, 243pp. 12 figs. Map. £30.00.

THE TRAGEDY OF THE TURKISH CAPITAL TAX. By FAIK OKTE. London, Croom Helm, 1987. 95 pp.

BARTERED BRIDES. By NANCY TAPPER. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1991. xx, 309pp. £32.50 ($54.50).

MUSLIM FAMILIES IN NORTH AMERICA. Edited by EARLE H. WAUGH, SHARON McIRVIN ABU‐LABAN and REGULA BURCKHARDT QURESHI. Canada, University of Alberta Press, 1991. xiv, 370 pp. $39.95.

AFRICANISMO Y ORIENTALISMO ESPANOL, in AWRAQ: ESTUDIOS SOBRE EL MUNDO ARABE E ISLAMICO CONTEMPORANEO. Edited by VICTOR MORALES LEZCANO. (Anejo al Volumen XI.) Madrid, Agencia Espanola de Cooperation Internacional, Universidad Nacional de Education a Distancia, 1990. 217pp.

VEILED HALF‐TRUTHS. WESTERN TRAVELLERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF MIDDLE EASTERN WOMEN. By JUDY MABRO. London, Tauris, 1991. x, 275pp.     

Polycentric Governance and Irrigation Reform in Kenya

In Kenya, as in many developing countries, centralized control over water resources was implemented to improve agricultural productivity. By the 1980s, however, Kenya's postindependence policies of bureaucratic control were in disarray, and conflicts over water use were common. More recently, Kenya has embarked on a series of reforms that create a polycentric approach to water governance, in which decision making about water resources is shared among multiple, overlapping local, regional, and national authorities. Drawing on archival and field research, we examine these reforms in their historic context and argue that whereas centralized control was poorly adapted to the Kenyan context, polycentric governance is better suited to Kenya's variable social and ecological conditions and the available resources of its administrative agencies.     

Factors Associated with Separation and Ongoing Violence among Women with Civil Protective Orders

This study examined a large sample of women recruited out of court at the time they received a civil protective order to better understand relationship status after obtaining a protective order (PO) and factors associated with protective order violations. Results are consistent with prior research suggesting that the protective order may be the impetus in separating from the abusive partner for some women, while for other women it is part of the separation process. Results also indicated that five out of ten women who did not continue a relationship experienced a violation while seven out of ten women who did continue a relationship with the PO partner experienced a violation. The majority of women felt safer and reported they believed the protective order was effective 13 months post-PO, regardless of relationship status. Furthermore, stalking played a significant role in separation from an abusive relationship and in protective order violations regardless of relationship status. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.

The ‘shared workplace’ agenda in Northern Ireland: lessons from local government

The study considers the ‘Shared’ Workplace agenda in Northern Ireland, which is a significant aspect of the reconciliation process. Our emphasis is on the capacity of a wide group of work-based social identifications to affect, limit, and frustrate this policy. Specifically, we address the impact of spatial and functional factors as well as occupational and professional characteristics through fieldwork in three local authorities. Interviews were held with a cross section of 65 subjects, each of whom had either been employed by or worked in partnership with one of these authorities. Our study thus contrasts with much of the literature on Northern Ireland, which is concerned with the impact of Protestant/Catholic or Unionist/Nationalist identities on such reconciliation processes in the workplace and more widely. This approach enables us to develop insights about implementation of such agendas, specifically concerning Northern Ireland and other deeply divided societies. In the conclusion, connections are also made between our findings and consociational forms of governance.     

Maintaining neutrality in the Minister's office

How do non-partisan advisors in Ministers’ offices maintain political neutrality while immersed in a highly politicised environment? Private Secretaries are ubiquitous non-partisan public service representatives in the political environment of Ministers’ offices. There has been significant research undertaken the role of political advisors in Ministers’ offices, yet the contribution of these non-partisan advisors has not yet been described in academic literature. The risk of Private Secretaries being overly responsive to politicians and undertaking political tasks rather than maintaining neutrality is ever present. Further, they must actively manage the risk of free and frank advice being obstructed by political advisors. This article presents views about political neutrality gleaned from interviews with Private Secretaries who have worked in Ministers’ offices in New Zealand during the period of 1997–2018. It presents new insights into the tensions within a key setting of the core executive.