The French Intifada

Product Description Beyond the affluent centre of Paris and other French cities, in the deprived banlieues, a war is going on. This is the French Intifada, a guerrilla war between the French state and the former subjects of its Empire, for whom the mantra of 'liberty, equality, fraternity' conceals a bitter history of domination, oppression, and brutality. This war began in the early 1800s, with Napoleon's lust for martial adventure, strategic power and imperial preeminence, and led to the armed colonization of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, and decades of bloody conflict, all in the name of 'civilization'. Here, against the backdrop of the Arab Spring, Andrew Hussey walks the front lines of this war - from the Gare du Nord in Paris to the souks of Marrakesh and the mosques of Tangier - to tell the strange and complex story of the relationship between secular, republican France and the Muslim world of North Africa. The result is a completely new portrait of an old nation. Combining a fascinating and compulsively readable mix of history, politics and literature with Hussey's years of personal experience travelling across the Arab World, The French Intifada reveals the role played by the countries of the Maghreb in shaping French history, and explores the challenge being mounted by today's dispossessed heirs to the colonial project: a challenge that is angrily and violently staking a claim on France's future. Review 'I'm looking forward to The French Intifada. With the troubled banlieues as his starting point, Hussey visits the frontlines of a guerrilla struggle that has been going on since 1800, from the Gare du Nord to the souks of Marrakech, to the mosques of Tangier.' --'2014 non-fiction preview', Rachel Cooke, Observer 'Hussey's as much at home with hip-hop and gruesome Islamist videos as he is talking to buttoned-up French prison officials. I admire Andrew Hussey's book because he has had the courage to go where I didn't' --Nick Fraser, Observer 'Hussey is an engaging guide writing with authority and humour about everything from Zinedine Zidane to architecture. He manages to make what at times is a terrible tale into a fascinating and enjoyable read' --Irish Examiner 'The French Intifada mixes lively street reportage with the history of two brutal centuries in France's former Maghreb territories. This is strong stuff' --New Statesman 'Disturbing and provocative' --Daily Telegraph 'Urgent and brilliant… Superb writing on the complexities of race, religion and immigration that situates this in the legacies of Empire and colonialism' --Huffington Post 'Disturbing and provocative' --Daily Telegraph 'Hussey's narrative strategy is to combine the job of a historian with that of a reporter, and he evinces gusto for being on the ground. His writing is lively and well paced' --Times Literary Supplement 'Disturbing and provocative' --Daily Telegraph 'Indispensable' -- 'Books of the Year' Spectator chosen by Patrick Marnham --'Book of the Year' chosen by Patrick Marnham, Spectator 'Andrew Hussey is a British academic who knows France and its colonial history better than most French people. He tells the ugly truth. Vivid… Hussey is descriptive not prescriptive. He offers no solutions, but his willingness to delve into other belief systems is a worth-while, sobering journey. French officials should read Hussey's book' --Paperback review, Irish Times 'Fascinating and hugely readable… Hussey makes a strong case' --Pick of the Paperbacks, Sunday Times From the Inside Flap Beyond the affluent centre of Paris and other French cities, in the deprived banlieues, a war is going on. This is the French Intifada, a guerrilla war between the French state and the former subjects of its Empire, for whom the mantra of 'liberty, equality, fraternity' conceals a bitter history of domination, oppression, and brutality. This war began in the early 1800s, with Napoleon's lust for martial adventure, strategic power and imperial preeminence,