"This is a wide-ranging, pithy, and painstakingly thorough collection, at once gripping and informative. It fills a critical lacuna in Middle East Studies and in the study of Islamist groups in particular, which, although already impressive in the breadth of their literature, remain mostly on the order of hagiographies and eloquent apologetics, more often than not justifying Islamism rather than mining its history and subjecting it to the honest critic's scalpel. Barry Rubin's collection has distinguidhed itself from the rest quite brilliantly here, supplementing the field with a refreshing, dispassionate treatment of the Brotherhoods, and providing specialists, students, and the general public with an alternative reading to common platitudes currently dominating the field. What's more, Rubin and the other contributors to this volume did that with alacrity, penetrating attention to detail, scrupulous plumbing of sources, and a pellucid jargon-free style, making this collection at one instructive and strikingly accessible."The Muslim Brotherhood is the oldest and most important international Islamist group. Aside from strong organizations in Egypt, Jordan, Syria---where it provides the main opposition---and its palestinian offshoot Hamas which rules the Gaza Strip, the Brotherhood has become active in Europe and North America. Its Flexible tactics which range from terrorism through electoral participation to social welfare activities have made it a particularly effective group. This book is the first comprehensive analysis of the Brotherhood's organizations, doctrine, and leaders in all the main countries where it operates.