Robert Irwin was a novelist, publisher, reviewer, Arabist and historian. He was formerly a lecturer in the Department of Mediaeval History in the University of St Andrews and later...view moreRobert Irwin was a novelist, publisher, reviewer, Arabist and historian. He was formerly a lecturer in the Department of Mediaeval History in the University of St Andrews and later a Senior Research Associate of the History Department of the School of Oriental and African Studies, London University. He published seventeen books, of which six are novels. He was a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. Memoirs of a Dervish was published by Profile in 2011.view less