This is the middle of three chronological volumes containing biographical essays on Arabic literary figures. This volume contains essays on 38 figures who lived between 1350 and 1850. This period has been widely dismissed as an era of decadence and decline, which is an impression the editors hope to begin to overturn with this collection. They have sought an even temporal and geographical distribution of authors discussed (although they admit to an unfortunate lack of representation of Arabic regions of Africa). They have adopted a wide definition of the term literature but have sought an emphasis on authors of belletristic works. Some well-known figures, such as Ibn Khaldun and al-Maqrizi, have been omitted in order to make room for less well-known individuals. Distributed in North America by The David Brown Book Co. Annotation ©2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)