The Heretic of Baghdad

Published by Takween Publishing, "The Heretic of Baghdad: As Told by Ibn al-Rawandi" by Jafar Rajab is an inventive historical-philosophical novel. The narrative revolves around the enigmatic 9th-century thinker Ibn al-Rawandi, whose intellectual trajectory took him from Mu'tazilism to Shi'ism, and ultimately to accusations of heresy and freethought. With dark humor and rich historical backdrop, Rajab explores Abbasid Baghdad's intellectual circles, examining the thin line between faith, doubt, hypocrisy, and total rebellion. The book serves as a provocative meditation on freedom of thought, religious orthodoxy, and the plight of the freethinker in turbulent times.

It offers a brilliant mix of historical fiction, sharp satire, and philosophical inquiry, shedding light on freethought and intellectual history in classic Baghdad.

Fans of historical fiction, readers interested in Islamic philosophy and intellectual history, and anyone drawn to stories about skepticism, dissent, and free thought.