The Halva-Maker is a three-part novel, contributes through the medium of fiction to this different interpretation of the historical record, in that its third segment, entitled 'The Kurd,' is set during the final years of the Fatimid Caliphate in Egypt and the attempts by Amaury (Almaric), Crusader King of Jerusalem, to take advantage of the weaknesses of the Egyptian regime. A central figure--the 'Kurd' of the section's title--is Yusuf ibn Ayyub, known as Salah ad-din (Saladin), who is sent by Nur ad-din Zengi, the governor of Aleppo, Syria, to oust the Crusaders. In 1171, Saladin brings the caliphate of Al-`Adid and the Fatimids to a close, restores Egypt to Sunni Islam, and assumes the sultanate himself, giving his name to the dynasty that follows (Ayyubids).