Michael Sells is the Barrows Professor Emeritus of the History and Literature of Islam and professor emeritus of comparative literature at the University of Chicago. He is the author of many translations and studies of classical Arabic poetry.

"Michael Sells, a highly regarded expert on the history and literature of Islam, and translator of this splendid book, provides all we might need to understand the poems in their broader historical context. . . . It is the clarity of his translations that bring these poems back for us, their marvels intact."---Allan Graubard, American Book Review

Michael Sells is the Barrows Professor Emeritus of the History and Literature of Islam and professor emeritus of comparative literature at the University of Chicago. He is the author of many translations and studies of classical Arabic poetry.

"Michael Sells, a highly regarded expert on the history and literature of Islam, and translator of this splendid book, provides all we might need to understand the poems in their broader historical context. . . . It is the clarity of his translations that bring these poems back for us, their marvels intact."---Allan Graubard, American Book Review

Michael Sells is the Barrows Professor Emeritus of the History and Literature of Islam and professor emeritus of comparative literature at the University of Chicago. He is the author of many translations and studies of classical Arabic poetry.

"Michael Sells, a highly regarded expert on the history and literature of Islam, and translator of this splendid book, provides all we might need to understand the poems in their broader historical context. . . . It is the clarity of his translations that bring these poems back for us, their marvels intact."---Allan Graubard, American Book Review