LumberingState,RestlessSocietyoffersacomprehensiveandcompellingunderstandingofmodernEgypt.NathanJ.Brown,ShimaaHatab,andAmrAdlyguidereadersthroughcrucialdevelopmentsinEgyptianpolitics,society,andeconomicsfromthemiddleofthetwentiethcenturythroughthepresent.Integratingdiverseperspectivesandareasofexpertise,includingthetoolsofcomparativepolitics,thebookprovidesanaccessibleandclearintroductiontotheEgyptoftodayalongsideaninnovativeandrigorousanalysisofthecountry’shistoryandgovernance.Brown,Hatab,andAdlyhighlightwaysinwhichEgyptresemblesothersocietiesaroundtheworld,drawingfromandcontributingtobroaderdebatesinpoliticalscience.Theytracetheemergenceofapowerfulandintrusivestatealongsideasocietythatisincreasinglypoliticized,andtheyemphasizehowtherulersandregimeswhohavebuiltandsteeredthestateapparatushavealsohadtoretreatandrecalibrate.Theauthorsalsoexaminewhyauthoritarianism,corporatism,andsocialismhavedecayedwithoutresultinginaliberaldemocraticorder,andtheyshowwhyEgyptianpoliticsshouldnotbeunderstoodintermsofasingledominantforcebutratheraninterplayamongmanyactors.Atoncecurrent,insightful,andengaging,LumberingState,RestlessSocietydeliversapowerfulanddistinctiveaccountofmodernEgyptinthemodernworld.
