A House of Many Mansions: The History of Lebanon Reconsidered (Paperback)

by Kamal Salibi (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Today Lebanon is one of the world's most divided countries. But paradoxically the faction-ridden Lebanese, both Christians and Muslims, have never shown a keener consciousness of common identity. How can this be? In the light of modern scholarship, a famous Lebanese writer and scholar examines the historical myths on which his country's warring communities have based their conflicting visions of the Lebanese nation. He shows that Lebanon cannot afford this divisiveness, that in order to develop and maintain a sense of political unity, it is necesary to distinuish fact from fiction and then build on what is real in the common experience of both groups.
Salibi offers a major reinterpretation of Lebanese history and provides remarkable insights into the dynamic of Lebanon's recent conflict. In so doing, he illuminates important facets of his country's present and future. This book also gives a masterly account of how the imagined communities that underlie modern nationalism are created and will be of interest to students of international affairs as well as Near Eastern scholars.

From the Inside Flap
"Kamal Salibi is the foremost living historian of Lebanon, and his new book is even more important than his earlier one because it throws light ont he present and future of the country as well as its past."--Albert Hourani, author of A History of the Arab Peoples

"Among Lebanese historians only Kamal Salibi has the credibility to write such a book. Its timely appearance signals a new era in Lebanese history. It will undoubtedly become a classic"--Nadim Shehadi, Director, the Centre for Lebanese Studies, Oxford

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Product Details

• Paperback: 254 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press (October 12, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520071964
• ISBN-13: 978-0520071964
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #495,810 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The multi-faceted history of Lebanon., February 27, 2006

By	Utah Blaine (Somewhere on Trexalon in District 268) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This book isn't so much a history of Lebanon as about how the Maronites, the Druze, the Sunnites, and the Shi'ites hold different views of the history of Lebanon. It is difficult to understand one's history if there is little concensus about what is fact and what is myth. It is this latter aspect, fact versus myth, that Salibi explores. He attempts to outline the history of Lebanon as viewed by each of the major religious/political parties and detail what is supported by historical evidence and what is not. Overall, I feel that he has succeeded. Several points of particular interest include the fact that no group in Lebanon today has any strong claim to have descended from the ancient Phoenicians, and Salibi's discussion regarding the complications of Arabic nationalism versus Islamism is particularly enlightening. If I had any complaint about this book, it is that Salibi spends too much of the text on the Maronite and Druze communities, and not enough on the Shi'ite or Sunnite. This is a rather dense book packed with details and information, and I would not consider it a light read, but it is well worth the time invested.

26 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is your reference in Lebanese history, September 23, 2004

By	Hussain Abdul-Hussain (Washington,DC USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Those who know Kamal Salibi, know that he is not affiliated with any Lebanese political group or party and that's what shoots Salibi's review of the Lebanese history up high.
Being an academic historian, Salibi wipes out popular versions of the Lebanese history and replaces them with a more analytical, critical, and well-researched version. In the heyday of a never ending debate about the identity of the Lebanese people, an objective historical record is highly needed.
Several Maronite historians should understand that they do not come from a different ethnic stock. They must thoroughly read their historical texts and subject them to historical analysis. Maronite history has become similar to a religious faith: it is not receptive of any historical examination.
Salibi does not favor one group more than another in this book. He only classifies groups according to the available texts and what he gets in conclusion is a different story about the history of Lebanon which might be sad, but true.
The anonymous reviewer who scorns Salibi for this book is apparently writing with the current political situation (the Syrians influencing Lebanese politics) in the back of his mind. This kind of review is what historians call biased history. Salibi never suggests that Lebanon must become a Syrian province, the reviewer reached to this conclusion by him/herself.

13 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The typical stereotype reaction, January 30, 2002

By	"phnassar" (Beirut Lebanon) - See all my reviews

I found the book very good and neutral. Concerning the comments of Abdel Hussein Hussein, I would say that he did not understand the main lesson of the book. Using the typical stereotype reaction by saying: "The Maronites should understand..." Mr. Hussein just committed the same mistake that was pinpointed by Kamal Salibi. I think it is time to wake up and understand that while Maronite, Sunni and Chiaa leaders were always hand in hand in securing silently their own personal interests, they where at the same time convincing people, such as Mr. Hussein, that the community was at risk and they should react (Just note that the worst combats during the Lebanese war were inter-community ones)