Review of Francesco Piraino, Sufism in Europe: Islam, Esotericism and the New Age. Islamochristiana 52 (2026).

This review assesses Francesco Piraino’s Sufism in Europe: Islam, Esotericism and the New Age, a comparative ethnographic study of four Sufi orders in France and Italy. It highlights the book’s contribution to understanding how Sufi communities negotiate mystical experience, institutional tradition, religious authority, and public engagement. Particular attention is paid to its treatment of esotericism, New Age spirituality, and interreligious dialogue. While questioning the geographical scope of “Europe” and noting occasional historical and philological inaccuracies, the review welcomes the book’s challenge to established binaries and its analytical framework for studying contemporary Sufism.