Ali Rahnema's newest work is a meticulous historical reconstruction of the events surrounding the Iranian coup d'etat in 1953 that led to the overthrow of Mohammed Mosaddeq and his government. Mosaddeq's removal from power has probably attracted more attention than any other event occurring during his tenure because of the role of foreign involvement; the political, economic and social impact on Iran and the long-term impact the ousting had on Iran-U.S. relations. Drawing on a wealth of American, British and Iranian sources, Rahnema closely examines the four-day period between the first...

Shi 'ism caught the attention of the world as Iran experienced her revolution in 1979 and was subsequently cast in the mold of a monolithic discourse of radical political Islam. The spokespersons of Shi'i Islam, in or out of power, have not been the sole representatives of the faith. Nonconformist and uncompromising, the Shi i jurist and reformist Shari at Sangelaji (1891-1944) challenged certain popular Shi i beliefs and the mainstream clerical establishment, guarding and propagating it. In Shi'i Reformation in Iran, Ali Rahnema offers a fresh understanding of Sangelaji s reformist discourse...