"This ambitious, compelling and comprehensive examination of the tribes of Libya and Iraq, by one of the most impressive scholars in Middle East Studies today, will almost certainly become the 'classic' treatment of the subject." -- Ronald Bruce St John, author of Historical Dictionary of Libya"Readable and thought-provoking. Pargeter has given us a thorough, perceptive, evidence-based analysis. Nothing is off-limits in this full-throated argument for why and when tribes matter, in strong states and weak ones, and in urban as well as rural settings." -- Michael Knights, Jill and Jay Bernstein Fellow, The Washington Institute, and author of 25 Days to Aden: The Unknown Story of Arabian Elite Forces"An impressive analysis, unique in its intellectual scope and certainly one of the best available for understanding tribal-state relations in the contemporary Middle East." -- Uzi Rabi, Director, Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies, Tel Aviv University, and editor of Tribes and States in a Changing Middle East"Moving beyond often caricatured narratives, this excellent book explores how tribes in Libya and Iraq operate in all of their complexity, as 'multifaceted' bodies that play enduring roles in the negotiation of power in their respective states. Essential reading." -- Tim Eaton, Senior Research Fellow, Middle East and North Africa Programme, Chatham House"An important and deeply researched contribution to the continuing debate over the role of tribes in Libya, past, present and future.

" -- Mary Fitzgerald, Middle East Institute"Although little remains of early Empire, other than the monumental buildings of the time, [Llewellyn-Jones] pulls together? intriguing stories out of the charred fragments."-- The Hindu"In this invaluable addition to knowledge of state-tribe relations in Libya and Iraq, Pargeter (King's College London) contends that literature on the tribes during the Arab nationalist period is almost nonexistent." -- Choice"Essential to grasping tribal influence." -- Middle East Journal.