Kenneth Perkins' book, which was the first English-language history of modern Tunisia, traces its story from the mid-nineteenth century to the present day. The years from 1881 saw the inauguration of French colonial rule, the creation of the nationalist movement and, finally, independence in 1956. Perkins examines the problems that were created by colonialism, and the measures undertaken to achieve independence. He then describes the subsequent process of state-building, including the design of political and economic structures and the promotion of a social and cultural agenda. In conclusion, he reviews the years since 1987, when a new regime came to power with promises of correcting the most widely perceived faults of its predecessor. Perkins' readable and informed introduction will be a necessity for students of the region, and also for anyone travelling there who wants a more comprehensive approach than most guide books can offer.

Kenneth Perkins' book traces the history of Tunisia from the mid-nineteenth century to the present. After initially examining the years of French colonial rule from 1881 to 1956, when the Tunisians achieved independence, he describes the subsequent process of state-building, including the design of political and economic structures and the promotion of a social and cultural agenda. In conclusion, Perkins reviews the years since 1987, when a new regime came to power.

This book examines the history of Tunisia from the mid-nineteenth century to the present with an emphasis on political, social, economic and cultural developments.

Kenneth Perkins's second edition of A History of Modern Tunisia carries the history of this country from 2004 to the present, with particular emphasis on the Tunisian revolution of 2011 - the first critical event of that year's Arab Spring and the inspiration for similar populist movements across the Arab world. After providing an overview of the country in the years preceding the inauguration of a French protectorate in 1881, the book examines the impact of colonialism on the country, with particular attention to the evolution of a nationalist movement that secured the termination of the protectorate in 1956. Its analysis of the first three decades of independence, during which the leaders of the anticolonial struggle consolidated political power, assesses the challenges that they faced and the degree of success they achieved. No other English-language study of Tunisia offers as sweeping a time frame or as comprehensive a history of this nation.

The Arab Spring began and ended with Tunisia. In a region beset by brutal repression, humanitarian disasters, and civil war, Tunisia's Jasmine Revolution alone gave way to a peaceful transition to a functioning democracy. Within four short years, Tunisians passed a progressive constitution, held fair parliamentary elections, and ushered in the country's first-ever democratically elected president. But did Tunisia simply avoid the misfortunes that befell its neighbors, or were there particular features that set the country apart and made it a special case? In Tunisia: An Arab Anomaly, Safwan M. Masri explores the factors that have shaped the country's exceptional experience. He traces Tunisia's history of reform in the realms of education, religion, and women's rights, arguing that the seeds for today's relatively liberal and democratic society were planted as far back as the middle of the nineteenth century. Masri argues that Tunisia stands out not as a model that can be replicated in other Arab countries, but rather as an anomaly, as its history of reformism set it on a separate trajectory from the rest of the region. The narrative explores notions of identity, the relationship between Islam and society, and the hegemonic role of religion in shaping educational, social, and political agendas across the Arab region. Based on interviews with dozens of experts, leaders, activists, and ordinary citizens, and a synthesis of a rich body of knowledge, Masri provides a sensitive, often personal, account that is critical for understanding not only Tunisia but also the broader Arab world.

Looking at women, politics, and culture in Tunisia from 1950s independence to the 1970s, highlighting the centrality of women to post-colonial state-building.

The overthrow of the regime of President Ben Ali in Tunisia on 14 January 2011 took the world by surprise. The popular revolt in this small Arab country and the effect it had on the wider Arab world prompted questions as to why there had been so little awareness of it up until that point. It also revealed a more general lack of knowledge about the surrounding western part of the Arab world, or the Maghreb, which had long attracted a tiny fraction of the outside interest shown in the eastern Arab world of Egypt, the Levant and the Gulf. This book examines the politics of the three states of the central Maghreb--Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco--since their achievement of independence from European colonial rule in the 1950s and 1960s. It explains the political dynamics of the region by looking at the roles played by the military, political parties and Islamist movements and addresses factors such as Berber identity and economics, as well as how the states of the region interact with each other and with the wider world. -- Provided by publisher.