Book

It's a beautiful night, warm with a gentle breeze, perfect for sitting outside with the telescope to look at the stars. Unfortunately, I've got a mammoth amount of actual work to do, so this will be a short post.

I came across this book the other day, prompted by comments on a post below by Aziz, Zack and Razib, on Amazon.com: An Ismaili Heresiography: The "Bab Al-Shaytan" from Abu Tammam's Kitab Al-Shajara (Islamic History and Civilization. Studies and Texts, V. 23). The title was intriguing, but Amazon didn't provide a description, although I found one here:

Presents the "Chapter on Satan"(Bab al-shaytan) from a long unrecognized Ismaili work called the Kitab al-shajara by the 4th/10th century Khurasani da‘i, Abu Tammam. The satans of Abu Tammam's "Chapter" are the founders and instigators of the seventy-two heretical sects of Islam. Each sect has been accorded a relatively lengthy description as perceived from a generally Shi'a and Mu‘tazili point of view. Most entries offer new information about these sects and, in several cases, the account given is for a sect almost completely unknown in the existing Islamic heresiographical literature.

Sounds like perfect summer beach reading, but regrettably, the price is rather steep. I'll have to sleep on this one.