diff --git a/MANIFEST.in b/MANIFEST.in
index bf423c2d451ed2fb41a844af00b7286ddaf51343..00ed55aee085b8338490d8ce0e3ce9e2cc10b5c5 100644
--- a/MANIFEST.in
+++ b/MANIFEST.in
@@ -25,5 +25,7 @@ include Makefile.in
 include aksetup_helper.py
 include README_SETUP.txt
 
+include README.rst
+
 recursive-include bpl-subset/bpl_subset/boost *.h *.hpp *.cpp *.html *.inl *.ipp *.pl *.txt
 recursive-include bpl-subset/bpl_subset/libs *.h *.hpp *.cpp *.html *.inl *.ipp *.pl *.txt
diff --git a/README.rst b/README.rst
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b60105c6e4a4ee0a871275497aeab757fd1dd785
--- /dev/null
+++ b/README.rst
@@ -0,0 +1,26 @@
+islpy is a Python wrapper around Sven Verdoolaege's `isl
+<http://www.kotnet.org/~skimo/isl/>`_, a library for manipulating sets and
+relations of integer points bounded by linear constraints.
+
+Supported operations on sets include
+
+* intersection, union, set difference,
+* emptiness check,
+* convex hull,
+* (integer) affine hull,
+* integer projection,
+* computing the lexicographic minimum using parametric integer programming,
+* coalescing, and
+* parametric vertex enumeration.
+
+It also includes an ILP solver based on generalized basis reduction, transitive
+closures on maps (which may encode infinite graphs), dependence analysis and
+bounds on piecewise step-polynomials.
+
+Islpy comes with comprehensive `documentation <http://documen.tician.de/islpy>`_.
+
+*Requirements:* Only the `GNU Multiprecision Library <http://gmplib.org/>`_
+and its Python wrapper `gmpy <https://code.google.com/p/gmpy/>`_ (Version 1.x)
+are required. A version of isl is shipped with islpy, but optionally
+a system-wide one may also be used.
+
diff --git a/setup.py b/setup.py
index 070d01c09d1d9dd7760aaa56e811fe3e32ed7f0e..e5349b91ecfe1fe06de609dff9ac5e9133d6584e 100644
--- a/setup.py
+++ b/setup.py
@@ -96,33 +96,7 @@ def main():
     setup(name="islpy",
           version=conf["VERSION_TEXT"],
           description="Wrapper around isl, an integer set library",
-          long_description="""
-                islpy is a Python wrapper around Sven Verdoolaege's `isl
-                <http://www.kotnet.org/~skimo/isl/>`_, a library for manipulating sets and
-                relations of integer points bounded by linear constraints.
-
-                Supported operations on sets include
-
-                * intersection, union, set difference,
-                * emptiness check,
-                * convex hull,
-                * (integer) affine hull,
-                * integer projection,
-                * computing the lexicographic minimum using parametric integer programming,
-                * coalescing, and
-                * parametric vertex enumeration.
-
-                It also includes an ILP solver based on generalized basis reduction, transitive
-                closures on maps (which may encode infinite graphs), dependence analysis and
-                bounds on piecewise step-polynomials.
-
-                Islpy comes with comprehensive `documentation <http://documen.tician.de/islpy>`_.
-
-                *Requirements:* Only the `GNU Multiprecision Library <http://gmplib.org/>`_
-                and its Python wrapper `gmpy <https://code.google.com/p/gmpy/>`_ (Version 1.x)
-                are required. A version of isl is shipped with islpy, but optionally
-                a system-wide one may also be used.
-                """,
+          long_description=open("README.rst", "rt").read(),
           author="Andreas Kloeckner",
           author_email="inform@tiker.net",
           license = "MIT for the wrapper/LGPL for isl",