"A number of solid journalistic accounts of the rise of Boko Haram have appeared in recent years, but Thurston’s scholarly works stands out and deserves a wide readership. It offers an authoritative take on the group’s murky origins and wisely situates its rise within the context of Nigerian political history."---Nicolas van de Walle, Foreign Affairs
"Boko Haram: The History of an African Jihadist Movement supersedes everything that has been written so far on the development of this enigmatic jihadist movement in northeastern Nigeria. Based on years of research in Northern Nigeria as well as his knowledge of a vast number of primary sources in both Arabic and Hausa, Thurston is able to present a highly convincing account of the historical development of this jihadist movement."---Roman Loimeier, Africa Spectrum
"Remarkable. . . . [Thurston] breaks from the prevailing narrative that Boko Haram emerged solely because of the poor governance, poverty, and economic misfortune in Nigeria’s northeast. Instead, Thurston appropriately places religion, and specifically the interaction of religion and localized politics, at the center of his thesis."---Sam Wilkins, War on the Rocks
"One of Foreign Affairs' Picks for Best of Books 2018"
"Thurston’s book represents one of the most important contributions to the field."---Brandon Kendhammer, Bustan
"A welcome addition to our knowledge of terrorist organizations. . . . As balanced and comprehensive a treatment of Boko Haram as we are likely to see for many years."---Robert L. Tignor, Michigan War Studies Review
"Absorbing."---Robert Fulford, National Post
"A highly useful, timely, illuminating work about a little-understood terrorist group." (Kirkus)
"Thurston’s text is . . . a must for anybody interested in Nigeria’s recent past as well as the dynamics of political and religious development in the larger West African religion."---Roman Loimeier, Africa Spectrum
"We now have what may well become the definitive work on the group in the form of Alexander Thurston’s superbly detailed new book. . . . Thurston convincingly debunks theories of Boko Haram that would deny its uniquely Nigerian nature . . . [and] sets straight those who think Boko Haram is primarily an extension of jihadist operations from elsewhere."---James H. Barnett, The Weekly Standard
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