A Muslim Suicide

Award-winning novelist Bensalem Himmich's third novel to be translated into English is a vertiginous exploration of one of Islam's most radical thinkers, the Sufi philosopher Ibn Sab'in. Born in Spain, he was forced to emigrate to Africa because of his controversial views. Set against the backdrop of a politically charged thirteenth-century Islamic world, Himmich's novel is a rich blend of fact and imagination that re-creates the intellectual debates of the time.