Ibn 'Abd Rabbih lived in Andalusia in the ninth century. He was a poet and collector of information. His composition of twenty-five books is known as "the Unique Necklace". This volume contains
the "Book of the Coral" and "The Book of the Ruby". Translated by Arabic scholar Boullata, the translation is then reviewed by De Young. The Coral consists of a number of anecdotes from the
early days of Islam, mainly about political and military people. The Ruby deals more with how to live a good life with sections on friendship, relations to family, gossip and the raising of
children among many others. All the chapters are told in anecdotal form in either prose or poetry. This is a classic of early Muslim history and ideas, told in an engaging manner that should be
of interest to anyone who wishes to learn more about the culture. Distributed in North America by ISBS. Annotation 穢2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
