Wonders and Rarities

“The wonders and curiosities of the Islamic imagination await discovery by a new generation of readers in this superb and very enjoyable book by Travis Zadeh.”—Orhan Pamuk, winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature

“A remarkable account of how a single text captivated readers for centuries, across the boundaries of language, religion, culture, and politics. Travis Zadeh’s engrossing study uncovers, with great erudition, the genesis and many afterlives of an extraordinary book, illuminating its continued power to inspire and amaze readers in our present day.”—Richard Ovenden, author of Burning the Books: A History of the Deliberate Destruction of Knowledge

“A magnificent and essential book. Zadeh deftly illuminates centuries of occult and natural history, restoring Qazwīnī’s place in this vast world of thought. The result is an astonishing work of Islamic intellectual and cultural history, one that delves deeply into the intricacies and the pleasures of wonder without the prism of orientalism.”—Rana Safvi, author of Shahjahanabad: The Living City of Old Delhi

“Beautifully written and deeply researched, this book explores the religious and intellectual importance of wonder in Islamic civilization through the study of a classic text. A must-read!”—Jamal J. Elias, author of Aisha’s Cushion: Religious Art, Perception, and Practice in Islam