PHILIP MARSDEN: Like Tolstoys, Lesley Blanchs sense of history is ultimately convincing not because of any sweeping theses, but because of its particularities, the quirks of individuals and their personal narratives, their deluded ambitions, their vanities and passions. THE GUARDIAN: Crammed with truly fabulous stories of fighting and love and violent death . . . this profound and exhilarating book turns the struggle of the people of the Caucasus to remain independent of Russia into a universal saga . . . it is no wonder Shamyl had such a powerful influence on Tolstoy and Pushkin. Biography of supreme Muslim chieftain and military leader, Imam Shamyl, the Lion of Daghestan fighting in the eastern Caucasus from 1834-59, by the late author and distinguished traveller, Lesley Blanch, MBE. It took six years to complete, with research done in Russia and the Caucasus, including tracing his descendants in Turkey and Egypt. Also a historical narrative, there are beautiful descriptions of the Caucasus - a region of supreme natural beauty and mighty mountain ranges - and the campaigns in which Lermontov and Tolstoy participated. During the Caucasian Wars of Independence, the warring mountain tribes of Daghestan and Chechnya united under the charismatic leadership of Imam Shamyl - strengthened only by the desire for an independent Caucasus and their religious faith. For years Shamyl defied his enemy, the Tsar, who had taken his eldest son as a hostage to St Petersburg. Shamyl captured in turn two Georgian princesses (from the Tzarinas entourage), a French governess, and the children, and kept them in his harem until they could be exchanged for his son. Lesley Blanchs epic account of the heroic and bloody struggles, and her vivid portrayal of the strange and magnetic rebel Imam who became a legend, is particularly relevant in light of the continuing conflict in Chechnya. The great leader and his fiercely proud warriors haunt the Russian psyche to this day. BRIAN ALDISS A book as thick with flavour as roast wild boar, tusks and all. One of the most nutritious books I have ever readAbout the Author:A scholarly romantic, Lesley Blanch (1904-2007) influenced and inspired generations of writers, readers and critics. She was a distinguished writer, artist, drama critic and features editor of British Vogue during World War II. Blanch was well ahead of her time and prescient in the way she attempted to bridge West and East - especially the West and Islam. In an interview with Shusha Guppy, she revealed that General de Gaulle wrote me a lovely letter about The Sabres of Paradise, and I have heard that he said it was remarkable that a woman should be able to understand the battles so well and describe them so vividly. The author of twelve books, including The Wilder Shores of Love, Journey into the Minds Eye, Pierre Loti and one novel, The Nine Tiger Man, she died in 2007. Her memoirs On the Wilder Shores of Love: A Bohemian Life are published by Virago. To learn more about Lesley, visit her website at www.lesleyblanch.com