Stone provides a brief historical overview of Algeria since 1830 before focusing on three crucial phases of the postcolonial era: that of Ben Bella and Boumedienne; the reform era of Chadli Benjedid; and the political and economic crisis under the Higher States Committee (HCE). He examines the dominant state institutions--the army and the FLN--and outlines the increasingly bitter divisions, social and political, which account for the current crisis.
Since the Algerian military annulled an election in January 1992 that would have brought to power the world's first democratically elected...

Everyone from kids to nutritionists loves beans--but they've always been slowpokes in the kitchen. Now the Stones have figured out not only how to speed the process along, they've come up with over 150 imaginative dishes--many of them vegetarian--simple enough to serve for weekday dinners, and elegant enough for company. Using flavors from all over the globe--Asia, Mexico, India, the Middle East--in addition to American favorites like chili and succotash, the Stones have created a recipe collection busy cooks will turn to again and again.

In addition to speedy one-dish meals,...