"[Ruedy] has skillfully compressed over two thousand years of Algerian history into a smooth, fast-paced narrative while at the same time addressing all the major questions concerning Algeria"s historical development...a tour de force." - Julia Clancy-Smith, University of Virginia. "Quite simply put, this work is the best and most comprehensive history of modern Algeria in English..." - "Digest of Middle East Studies". One of the largest countries in Africa and in the Arab world, Algeria in the last half of the twentieth century has stood as a compelling model of national liberation and development. Yet, as the century nears a close, Algeria is beset by a national crisis, its economy in virtual collapse, its single-party political system discredited, and its cultural identity challenged by emergent Islamic fundamentalism. John Ruedy provides the first up-to-date history of Algeria"s evolution from a segmented tribal order under the Ottoman Empire through five generations of French colonial exploitation, to an eight-year war of liberation, and finally to independent statehood. A concluding chapter surveys the developing political and economic crisis of the 1980s and 1990s, which witnessed Algeria at a crossroads between the Islamists and military rule. Synthesizing a large body of research in French, Arabic, and English, Ruedy incorporates political, economic, social, and cultural elements into his deft historical narrative. Maps, tables, an extensive bibliography, and a bibliographical essay enhance the utility of this book for students, scholars, and general readers.