Ed West's Blog

I'm thinking of doing a rejigged Iron, Fire and Ice, structured chronologically. A lot of the reviewers here didn't like its structure, and they may have a point, so I'm interested in anyone who might want to read a segment to see if it works better that way. Please share with any GoT fans who might be interested. My email is edjameswest@gmail.com

Small Men on the Wrong Side of History is published by Constable on March 17

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Small-Men-Wr...

Goodreads page here

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...

Once in a while my publisher will put one of my books on Kindle promotion, so they’re reduced in price to $1.49 or so. There’s another coming soon, and if you want me to email you when this happens, just email me at edjameswest@gmail.com and I’ll put you on a mailing list. I won’t email you about anything else but book offers and obviously I won’t give your email address to anyone else. Ed

You can view the first 8 chapters via LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/...

Iron, Fire and Ice is published just before the last series of Game of Thrones comes out in April (boo-hoo). I have a 9-chapter* sample on PDF, and if anyone wants to read it just email me at edjameswest@gmail.com



*it's a big book

Asabiyyah, my short ebook on Ibn Khaldun, the Islamic father of social science, is free this week (and you don't have to sign up to Kindle Unlimited either).

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Asabiyyah-Kh...

Here's a blurb:

A quarter of a century after the end of Communism swept away the ideological conflict of the ‘short 20th century’, a new world is once again taking shape, this time in the Middle East. But what does the crisis in the region, and its refugee exodus into Europe, signify for the future of the world? And why has the noble dream of nation-building failed? Focusing mainly on religion, ideology or economics, most analysis ignored one crucial factor: asabiyyah, or group feeling, something outlined six and a half centuries ago by a largely ignored Arab historian called Ibn Khaldun.

Ibn Khaldun is largely overlooked in the west, yet on top of his claim to being one of the greatest historians of all time can rightfully be viewed as the father of social science and sociology. His book, The Muqaddimah, dealt with a range of subjects from science to economics to the rise and fall of empires, which he attributed to ‘the asabiyyah cycle’ – the evolution of societies from barbarism to civilisation to decadence, which he attributed to the strength of ‘group feeling’.

Even today asabiyyah is an essential component of human society and development, and is the key to understanding why some states fail and others succeed, why democracy works sometimes but often not, and why the nation-state will remain the foundation of human society. Whatever happens from now on, the outcome of the 21st century will be dependent on asabiyyah, which remains the fundamental reality of human existence.

I'm new to Goodreads so just saying hello and thank you to everyone who has rated and reviewed my books, even the critical ones (many of which are useful and contain reasonable criticisms). I will blog more in future and do giveaways but in the meantime am open to any questions you have, or suggestions. My website can be found here and I can be contacted here.
http://www.edwest.co.uk/contact/
Thanks very much!
Ed