"Extremist Shiites" in this context are not, as one might expect, the terrorists and suicide bombers who have become politically so prominent since 1978. They are, rather, the theologically heterodox groups which have been spinning off from mainstream Shi'ism since the first years of Islam in the seventh century. These are Shi'is who deify the Prophet Muhammad's son-in-law, 'Ali, or his descendants; except for the 'Alawis of Syria, they tend to stay away from politics.
Moosa offers an ambitious, large-scale survey covering the Bektashis, Ahl-i Haqqis, Sarlis, Bajwan, Ibrahimis; and 'Alawis in a solid and workmanlike book. The author's erudition is massive, the subject complex, and the information made available helps one comprehend some of the smaller religious groups which give the Middle East its unique ethnic diversity. Nonetheless, this reader wishes that, his research done, Moosa had given greater effort to producing a more elegant presentation and a more coherent organization. The chapters follow no particular order and the allocation of space makes little sense: why, for example, does the discussion of 'Alawis take up more than one-third of the text?
