This volume investigates the application of Islamic law within the political and social framework of the 16th-century Songhay Empire. John O. Hunwick, a noted scholar of West African history, provides a critical edition and translation of the correspondence between the Songhay ruler Askia al-Hajj Muhammad and the North African scholar al-Maghili. The text serves as a primary source for understanding how Islamic jurisprudence was adapted to address the governance, taxation, and social conduct of a sub-Saharan state during the late medieval period.

Scholars of African history and Islamic law regard this work as a foundational primary source for the study of the Songhay Empire. Readers frequently note the academic density of the prose and the meticulous nature of Hunwick's translation and commentary.