Islam

August 21, 2000
Readers seeking a quick but thoughtful introduction to Islam will want to peruse Armstrong's latest offering. In her hallmark stylish and accessible prose, the author of A History of God takes readers from the sixth-century days of the Prophet Muhammad to the present. Armstrong writes about the revelations Muhammad received, and explains that the Qur'an earned its name (which means recitation) because most of Muhammad's followers were illiterate and learned his teachings not from reading them but hearing them proclaimed aloud. Throughout the book, Armstrong traces what she sees as Islam's emphasis on right living ( la Judaism) over right belief ( la Christianity). Armstrong is at her most passionate when discussing Islam in the modern world. She explains antagonisms between Iraqi Muslims and Syrian Muslims, and discusses the devastating consequences of modernization on the Islamic world. Unlike Europe, which modernized gradually over centuries, the Islamic world had modernity thrust upon it in an exploitative manner. The Islamic countries, Armstrong argues, have been "reduced to a dependent bloc by the European powers." Armstrong also rehearses some basics about Islamic fundamentalism in a section that will be familiar to anyone who has read her recent study, The Battle for God. A useful time line and a guide to the "Key Figures in the History of Islam" complete this strong, brisk survey of 1,500 years of Islamic history.

Starred review from August 1, 2000
If Armstrong's "Battle for God" were not as impressive as it is, this book would still make 2000 a banner year for her. A wonderfully well written overview of the newest great religion, it homes in on the aspect of Islam that most concerns those ignorant of it--namely, its attitude toward politics. The religion begun by Allah's revelations to the illiterate businessman Muhammad had to be concerned with power to grow from its beginnings as a cult within a tribe into a faith that erased tribal particularism to forge a God-centered, universal community. The Prophet himself became a warrior, but warfare isn't, Armstrong stresses, an Islamic tenet; it is a consequence of human imperfection that the realization of Muslim community is intended to mitigate. Islam is a practical faith, not a dogmatic one; it is concerned more with the conduct of life than with doctrines and credos. Because the creation and maintenance of Muslim community is its great task in the world, Islam has had to be more political than such transcendental faiths as Christianity and Buddhism. But politics doesn't license violence for Muslims, and modern Islamic fundamentalists are strictly mistaken both in making "jihad" or struggle central to the faith and in countenancing terrorism for the sake of "jihad." While she argues this view of Islam, Armstrong deftly sketches the human historical realities that have effected and affected the religion. An invaluable primer for non-Muslims. ((Reviewed August 2000))(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2000, American Library Association.)

September 15, 2000
Within the Muslim world, history and politics are inseparable vehicles of religious expression and cultural identity. A proper understanding of Islamic history is therefore essential if we are ever to resolve the major issues we face in the Middle East. In her newest book, best-selling author Armstrong (Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet; Jerusalem: One City, Three Faiths) does an admirable job of presenting Islamic history from an objective, unbiased point of view. This book (part of a new series of small-format hardcover originals from Modern Library) is a distillation of years of writing and thinking about Islam. The history of conflicts with the West from 1750 to the present, the modern Muslim State, fundamentalism, and the Muslim minority are some of the themes addressed. A listing of key figures in Islam is included. Short but detailed, this excellent synopsis of the topic is recommended for all libraries. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 4/1/00.]--Michael W. Ellis, Ellenville P.L., NY

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