Reading in Al-Mushtarak: A System for Democratic Socialism

Ibrahim Allawi's classic, Reading in Al-Mushtarak: A System for Democratic Socialism offers an important and timely exploration of revolutionary theory through a lens of Arab-Islamic history and socialist thought. Edited and translated for the very first time into the English language by Ali Al-Assam and Majid Allawi, this brilliant work provides an essential guide for those seeking to understand the intersections of Islamic philosophy and Marxist thought, advocating for a collaborative, democratic future. A must-read for scholars and activists, Reading in Al-Mushtarak presents a visionary framework for a contemporary socialism that is both deeply rooted in historical context and boldly forward-thinking.

"This work addresses a significant gap in the literature on socialist movements in the Middle East, with a focus on the Communist movement. It highlights the work of the late Ibrahim Allawi, an influential Iraqi communist leader who developed a highly sophisticated, rich, illuminating, and comprehensive theory of socialism. Allawi's theory was developed by examining the experiences of international socialist movements and the role of Islamic philosophical thought. It is extensive in its coverage and very carefully documented. The work has the potential to significantly enrich the field and I highly recommend it to students and scholars."

-Tareq Y. Ismael, Professor of Political Science at the University of Calgary, Canada. Co-editor of the Journal of Contemporary Iraq & the Arab World and president of the International Centre for Contemporary Middle Eastern Studies, Tareq Y. Ismael has made significant contributions to the field. He is the author/co-author and editor of numerous works on Iraq and the Middle East, including Iraq: The Human Cost of History (2003), The Iraqi Predicament: People in the Quagmire of Power Politics (2004), The Rise and Fall of the Communist Party in Iraq (2008), Cultural Cleansing: Why Museums Were Looted, Libraries Burned and Academics Murdered (2010), The Sudanese Communist Party: Ideology and Party Politics (2013), International Relations of the Contemporary Middle East (2014), Government and Politics of the Contemporary Middle East: Continuity and Change (2nd ed.), Iraq in the Twenty-First Century: Regime Change and the Making of a Failed State (2015), and Government and Politics of the Contemporary Middle East: Discontinuity and Turbulence (3rd ed., 2024).

"For anyone interested in alternative ways of organizing democracy this is an informative, stimulating and provocative text. Our critical and imaginative capabilities are nurtured here by a synthesis of historical and cross-cultural reflections on democratic socialism with a heavy emphasis on cooperation and community in a context of shared power, wealth and decision-making. In this time of substantial democratic deficits, Reading in Al-Mushtarak provides an intensely humane basis for the sort of relational, grass-roots democracy forged in cooperative, respectful dialogue. This could be the basis for the larger democratic social transformations of equity, voice, and control that have hitherto largely eluded revolutionary moments, or, more simply, could enhance local initiatives that, however much they improve material conditions, suffer from lack of bottom-up power-sharing and influence."

-Mick McKeown, Professor of Democratic Mental Health, School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of Central Lancashire.