Synopses & Reviews
In
The Afghan Amulet, Sheila Paine told the story of her extraordinary search for a mysterious amulet, a journey that had taken her from the Hindu Kush to Bulgaria.
Here, her quest continues. Starting in the forbidden valley of Palas in Pakistan, she travels through the former territories of the Soviet Union - from Arctic Northern Russia, through the lands of Genghis Khan’s Golden Horde and into Soviet Central Asia - Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and into the wild Tien Shan. She follows ancient trading routes, travelling in the footsteps of merchants and armies, chasing legends of goddess worship, traditions of Orthodox belief and stories of pagan superstition. Her relentless pursuit, involving years of travel, finally ends on the island of Karpathos in Greece, where in a tiny church on Easter Sunday she finds the amulet – a powerful talisman that is still used to ward off evil spirits. Sheila Paine’s search evolved into an unexpected journey full of twists and turns, dead ends and discoveries, ultimately revealing the ancient threads that culturally bind Central Asia and Eastern Europe.
Review
"Dona Stewart's short monograph adds a new and interesting dimension to the literature on Jordanian-Israeli relations... Among the more significant contributions in this book are the data that Stewart has collected on various aspects of normalization. In each aspect of bilateral relations, Stewart methodically chronicles a story of hopeful expectations and far fewer successful realities." - Daniel C. Kurtzer, Lecturer and S. Daniel Abraham Professor in Middle Eastern Policy Studies, Princeton University
"This volume is a lesson to would-be peacemakers: as Stewart points out, enduring peace requires constant nurturing and a continuing effort to compromise and make sacrifices. Her recommendations are realistic, as are her ultimately pessimistic forecasts for the road ahead. Ultimately this book is more than an account of Jordanian-Israeli exchanges since the 1994 Treaty was signed: it is more akin to a marriage guidance resource for peacemakers who seek the long-term happy ending." - Asian Affairs (Journal of the Royal Society of Asian Affairs), March 2008
Synopsis
More than a dozen years after Israel and Jordan signed a peace treaty, the treaty itself remains intact, but relations between the two states, especially at the societal level, have not fulfilled expectations. Focusing primarily on the Jordanian perspective, Dona Stewart here examines the challenges involved over the last decade to create "good neighbourly relations."
Synopsis
In 1994, Jordan and Israel signed a peace agreement and set out to create a "warm peace" between their countries. The peace was to include an extensive network of bilateral economic, security, and societal relationships and serve as a potential model for future relations between Israel and other Arab nations. More than a dozen years after, following the abandonment of the Oslo process and failure of the peace that would deliver expected dividends to Jordan, the treaty itself remains intact, but relations between the two states, especially at the societal level, have not fulfilled expectations. Focusing primarily on the Jordanian perspective, Dona Stewart here examines the challenges involved over the last decade to create "good neighbourly relations."
Synopsis
In 1994 Jordan became the second Arab country to sign a peace agreement with Israel and set out to create a "warm peace," and not just an end to hostilities. As such, the treaty sought to stimulate extensive networks of bilateral economic, cultural, societal and security relationships. Dona Stewart argues that, while the treaty itself remains intact, relations between the two states have far from fulfilled expectations. The decade that followed the treaty was turbulent, as the Oslo process collapsed, Rabin was assassinated, violence between Palestinians and Israel escalated and peace failed to deliver expected dividends to Jordan. Stewart approaches this subject through both Jordanian and Israeli perspectives, dissecting the challenges to establishing "good neighbourly relations" and the obstacles that have prevented the idea of peace from filtering down from government and into the rest of society.
About the Author
Dona Stewart is the director of the Middle East Center for Peace, Culture and Development at Georgia State University, Atlanta and associate professor of Geography. She is a former Fulbright Scholar in Jordan and Visiting Scholar at the Amman Center for Peace and Development.
Table of Contents
Preface * Beale Wildlife Gardens * Himalaya – Palas, High palas * The Quest * Northern Russia – The Pilgrims, Solovki, Of Wood, Flax and Goddesses, Moscow * The Lands of the Golden Horde – Nizhni Novogorod, The Chuvash,, The Mid-Volga * Turkmenistan – Train to Turkmenistan, Ashkabad, Karakalpakstan, Merv * Uzbekistan – Bukhara, Dollars and Documents, Samarkand, Shakhrisabz, Tashkent * The Tien Shan – Kirghizstan, Bishkek, Kara-Kol, detour, Kashgar, Karakoram Highway * Lawrence of Arabia * Return to the Lands of the Golden Horde: Russian Heartland – The Oka, The Volga, The Kama, Bulgari * Return to the Lands of the Golden Horde: Ukraine – Kiev, Crimea, The Carpathians * Karpathos – Olymbos, Easter, The Amulet * Postscript to the New Edition * Glossary * Bibliography * Index Preface * Beale Wildlife Gardens * Himalaya – Palas, High palas * The Quest * Northern Russia – The Pilgrims, Solovki, Of Wood, Flax and Goddesses, Moscow * The Lands of the Golden Horde – Nizhni Novogorod, The Chuvash,, The Mid-Volga * Turkmenistan – Train to Turkmenistan, Ashkabad, Karakalpakstan, Merv * Uzbekistan – Bukhara, Dollars and Documents, Samarkand, Shakhrisabz, Tashkent * The Tien Shan – Kirghizstan, Bishkek, Kara-Kol, detour, Kashgar, Karakoram Highway * Lawrence of Arabia * Return to the Lands of the Golden Horde: Russian Heartland – The Oka, The Volga, The Kama, Bulgari * Return to the Lands of the Golden Horde: Ukraine – Kiev, Crimea, The Carpathians * Karpathos – Olymbos, Easter, The Amulet * Postscript to the New Edition * Glossary * Bibliography * Index