5 comments about Acts of Faith: The Story of an American Muslim, the Struggle for the Soul of aGeneration.

1. I finished this book the week before CNN began to air their three night special entitled "God's Warriors." If you haven't made time to watch God's Warriors for the 6 hour duration, you should. If you haven't read Eboo Patel's book, Acts of Faith - The Story of an American Muslim, the Struggle for the Soul of a Generation,you must.
   
   Religious fundamentalism continues to be the spawning grounds for extremism that continues to ravage the soul of mankind. It is through the efforts of Eboo Patel and the InterFaith Youth Core (www.IFYC.org), that young adults from all faith persuasions are challenged to learn to live with one another, in collaborative harmony.
   
   The book recounts Patel's personal struggle with forging and cherishing his Muslim identity and faith, as an American, and then launching the InterFaith Youth Core as his vehicle for creating pluralistic understanding within the next generation of young adults who will become the leaders of our world. This book is about how one man decided to become part of the international interfaith youth movement.
   
   As Patel says, "In a world where the forces that seek to divide us are strong, I came to one conclusion: We have to save each other. It's the only way to save ourselves." P. 180
   
   This book chronicles how Eboo Patel came to participate in the movement of religious pluralism. In his own words, "Movements re-create the world. A movement is a growing group of people who believe so deeply in a new possibility that they participate in making it a reality. They won't all meet. They won't even know everybody else's names. But somehow, they all have the feeling that people on the other side of the city or country or the world believe in the same idea, burn with the same passion, and are taking risks for the same dream." P. 181.
   
   What's the meaning of this term "pluralism" from Patel's standpoint? He writes, "To see the other side, to defend another people, not despite your tradition but because of it, is the heart of pluralism." P. 179.
   
   In a world threatened and fractured by the isolationist requirements of religious fundamentalism and extremism, pluralism possesses the essential antidote. In Patels' words:
   
   "America is a nation that has constantly been rejuvenated by immigrants. For centuries, they have added new notes to the American song." P. 176.
   
   "The waters of faith, says one scholar, are so clear that they pick up the colors of the rocks they flow over." P. 176
   
   "Violence committed in the name of a religion is really violence emanating from the heart of a particular interpreter." P. 141.
   
   "Apartheid in South Africa was a violation of the spiritual principles of human togetherness." P. 116.
   
   In an interview with the Dalai Lama, he said: "Religions must dialogue, but even more, they must come together to serve others. Service is the most important. And common values, finding common values between different religions. And as you study the other religions, you must learn more about your own and believe more in your own." P. 96.
   
   "I realized that it was precisely because of America's glaring imperfections that I should seek to participate in its progress, carve a place in its promise, and play a role in its possibility. And at its heart and at its best, America was about pluralism." P. 89.
   
   A wonderful book. A guy I would like to meet. Consider joining Eboo and the Interfaith Youth Core at their convention in Chicago this fall entitled "Crossing The Faith Line" October 28th - 30th 2007
   
   Bill Dahl
   Author, Creator, Editor
   http://www.ThePorpoiseDivingLife.com



2. Patel warmly and understandably offers a solution to genuinely change the world - save it if you will!



3. I loved reading this book - couldn't put it down! I heard Eboo Patel speak at a Book Session in Chicago and he's really inspirational! I could relate to so many diff. things in his book. I've purchased several copies and distributed to friends and family! Great booK!



4. As the Director of the Center for Global Engagement at Northwestern University, I am always on the look out for books that help young people make sense of their place in the world and their potential to create meaningful change.
   
   What I felt the strongest connection to in Acts of Faith was Eboo's sense - which I felt throughout the book - that by exploring the intersection of one's own story and the legacy or history of the stories of which it is a part, each of us might better understand the potential of our own moment. Even more, each of us might be better able to access that potential and make it real.
   
   What I believe Eboo has come across - in this book and with IFYC more widely - is nothing less than a deep truth of human nature - that not only does our sense of self impact our impact on the world, but that by working to strengthen, round out and challenge that sense of self, we better enable everyone to contribute their unique assets, potentials, and perspectives to improving our shared future.
   
   What I've better come to understand after reading this is that what Patel calls "pluralism", the Center for Global Engagement calls "collaboration across borders," but it amounts to the same thing: a deep belief in the potential of the space we all share to make of this world all that it can be.
   
   Highly recommended for the young social entrepreneur, volunteer, or humanitarian on your list!



5. ACTS OF FAITH: THE STORY OF AN AMERICAN MUSLIM, THE STRUGGLE FOR THE SOUL OF A GENERATION tells of the author's coming of age and understanding of religious pluralism. He grew up outside of Chicago and was the subject of racist bullying and Muslim hatred - but learned in college what was at the root of prejudice. ACTS OF FAITH charts his ability to move beyond hate to deeper messages and provides inspiration for all, making it a special pick for any collection strong in spirituality or in Middle East politics and prejudices.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch

5 comments about The Ornament of the World: How Muslims, Jews and Christians Created a Culture of Tolerance in Medieval Spain.

1. Maria Rosa Menocal has created a gem retelling a history of the Iberian Peninsula in the era of Muslim oversight. In the five hundred years before the Spanish Inquisition Spain and Portugal were the center of scientific, literary, and cultural growth. Northern Europe suffered the ravages of the Dark Ages during these same years when The Plague bludgeoned the population into a superstitious, stagnant retreat from progress. Many will find the Muslim leaders' tolerance of all monotheistic faiths a surprise in our current political climate. To open one's mind to a balanced and beautiful age of enlightenment under Islamic rule is reason enough to seek out this excellent and well-crafted book.



2. I read this book a couple years ago while in Southern Portugal for the summer. I was in and out of Spain almost daily, as we stayed near the Guadiana River. My daughter and I climbed on as many castles as we could but because of this book I looked for remnants Arabic culture (which isn't difficult). We went to Sevilla, to the cathedral. I have to say this book came alive for me that summer. I lent it to someone, who didn't return it, so I just ordered another copy.
   
   Beside being a perfect read for my summer in Iberia, it's a great book for understanding where we are today, we're we've been, what went wrong. I highly recommend this book for people interested in the history of Spain (and Portugal) and those looking to understand how people of other historical eras dealt with the differences of their religious beliefs.



3. The culture of tolerance was created by MUSLIMS who were rulling Spain, the writer failed to point out that it was the muslims who granted and who created this tolerance of others.
   
   I am stunned at some reviews here who talked about the tolerance of Muslims at that time with the terms of the 21th century ! this is absurd, you cant look at that era in the eyes of this 21th century.
   
   The tolerance muslims gave to christians and jews was unmatched anywhere else in the world and the jewish massacre in 1066 has political and religious grounds, it did not happen out of nothing or because the victims just happend to be jews, in fact, at the very same time in 1066, Granada has JEWISH wazir or in modern terms prime minister !
   
   It is stil great book to read.



4. This is a beautifully written book with some great strengths, but it is almost as frustrating as it is enjoyable. Menocal delineates the big picture well, tracing the evolution of medieval Iberia from Abbasid province to Ummayad caliphate, through political breakdown to a bevy of competing Muslim and Christian taifas(city-states), which then slowly came under the sway of Castile. Ummayad Al-Andalus treated the dhimmi -- "Peoples of the Book" well: the Jewish community, in particular, prospered and played an active role in the economy, state, and Arabic-speaking culture of the peninsula. This intersection of peoples within a "culture of tolerance" was richly fruitful: for example, in Toledo Jews translated Arabic into early Castilian, which Christians then translated into Latin, thus making ancient Greek texts that had been preserved in Arabic available to Christian Europe. Menocal is at her best tracing the manifold influence of Iberian culture on both its component peoples and on northern Europe. Jews such as Samuel the Nagid revitalized Hebrew under the influence of Arabic poetry. Petrus Alfonsi, a Jewish convert to Christianity, brought knowledge of Islam and Judaism, some scientific knowledge, and new literary forms to England. Peter the Venerable of Cluny visited Toledo in search of translators of the Quran. Sparks flew in every direction. Menocal succeeds in re-contextualizing familiar works. Maimonides and Averroes appear as products of Al-Andalus, born into its culture of tolerance, accepting that faith and reason were compatible - but out of tune with the growing power of the repressive Almohad Muslim regime of their day. The elusive line between truth and fiction in Don Quixote echos a post-1492 Spain filled with Moriscos and Marranos who might be Christians or highly practiced pretenders.
   Despite the rich, evocative portrayal of Al-Andalus and its influence, Ornament of the World has some frustrating gaps. The boundaries of the "culture of tolerance" are never clearly defined: however willing Muslims and Jews were to borrow one another's poetic forms, did they also live in the same quarters of the city, intermarry, do business together? Admittedly, this may be substituting my own interests for those of the author. But the author also does not explain convincingly why a culture of tolerance arose on the Iberian peninsula in this period, or why it eventually fell. The fall of the culture of tolerance is discussed in the epilogue, but this reader, at least, came away unsatisfied.



5. This book I could recommend to anyone who wants to learn more about the early history of modern Europe. Usely it is said that the classical age ended with the Romans, and then after a thousand turbiulent years suddenly appeared renewed culture in Europe with the renaissance. Like there was a big gap in civilization. But there wasn't. There was the great arabic empire that stretched from Marocco to Pakistan, with it's poetry and philosofy and a culture where religion and science went hand in hand. Furthermore there is this remarkable story about a prince who flees from his mothercountry to build his new kingdom, which soon becomes the heart of culture in Europe, where jews, muslims and christians lived and worked side by side. A culture as big that it easely fills the gap the Romans left. A remarkable story that eventually will trigger the renaissance. The forgotten story of Al-Andalus.
   Allthough objective this story is written from the point of view of Al-Andalus itselve, which gives a perfect contrapoint to the somewhat common historyclass seen from the christian (castillian) point of view. This put the "Moors" as they denegratedly are called in a totally new perspective.

5 comments about Londonistan.

1. The author has taken an interesting subject and a large number of facinating, well-researched facts and managed to turn out the most boring, tediously written book on the subject that I have read so far. Think of your worst college history professor, droning on and on in that "Ferris Bueller teacher" voice until you want to jump out of your skin and you will have a good idea of the tone of this book. Maybe I'm picky about readability since I've been an editor for 20 years but I would recommend "While Europe Slept" or "America Alone" instead. However, if you've read all the other books, AND you are a glutton for punishment, this does provide a lot of information that could be interesting in the hands of a more talented writer.



2. She would be this author, who is well informed on this very important topic and, when simply presenting the facts, makes her case rather well. However, the facts are often overshadowed by the author's own prejudice and hyperreligiosity. President Bush said that the terrorists hate us because of our freedom; Ms.Phillip's solution seems to be to demolish those very freedoms and to capitulate to those very people whom she claims to be fighting against.Like many (if not most) of the neoCon authors on this topic, the solution that she presents for saving the West from the Muslim threat is simple: it's us or them, choose your theocracy. She shows how the Muslim extremists hate the West for its feminism, gay rights, freedom of speech, lifestyle, sexuality, and religion, and she agrees WITH the Muslim extremists! It's unbelievable. In her (and the neoCon establishment) mind, if the West would just go back to its lovely Victorian mentality the Muslims would see that the West has values and would leave us alone. Sorry, Mel, the Victorian era was not the happy time of corsets, bowler hats, and perfect morality that she seems to believe. Freedom was almost nonexistent, especially for women of all classes, nonAnglos, nonProtestants (including Catholics), and the working classes. The number of children who were sold into the brothels to be abused by "respectable" men should make that point clear enough. Also, the cat is out of the bag: women don't want to be forced into the kitchens to clean and have unwanted babies, gays will not go quietly back to the closet, and atheists, Jews, and freethinkers will not live in silence with their heads down for the Borg, I mean majority. Plus the Muslim fundies don't care if Europe goes back to a Christian orthodoxy. They believe that Christians and secularists are equally damned. What is the solution? Better immigration policies (how about opening Europe to North Americans who would love to live there? It worked for Johnny Depp), developing a backbone when dealing with extremists of ALL types, and standing for, not against, human rights and individual freedoms. If you want to read a good book on this topic that doesn't push our own surrender into theocracy as the only way; read "While Europe Slept". It's not perfect, but it is much more religiously open minded and less bigoted than this one. Once again, I acknowledge that Militant Islam is a massive threat; I simply refuse to believe that we in turn must follow blindly and allow the world to turn into a nuclear Crusade. Standing for freedom is the solution; not giving into religious bigotry and fear. Shalom.



3. I stopped reading this book in the middle because it becomes just another piece of pro-Israel propaganda.



4. The cult of death called Islam is spreading like the plague across the globe and only because it is allowed by the myopic, historically ignorant, illogical, naive and morally rudderless Western civilization. This book attempts to wake up the dozing Westerners who are more obsessed with saving the whales, trees, caribou and spotted owls while ignoring the danger growing right under their very noses. Westerners who are more concerned about multiculturalism and political correctness, and not offending anyone than with real nighmare sneaking in diguised as exotic "religion of peace".



5. Melonie Griffen's excellent book about the Muslim threat to traditional British values should be required reading for all English speaking people. The facts in her well-researched thesis convinced this 88-year-old reader that radical Muslims are well advanced in their plan to create a Muslim world. Londonistan should be required reading for all American High School Seniors.
   
   Al Kayworth; author
   
   Abenaki Warrior
   Legends of the Pond
   The Scalp Hunters
   Iceman to the Internet

5 comments about The Legacy of Jihad: Islamic Holy War and the Fate of Non-Muslims.

1. I have no intention of reading this cover to cover, as this is quite a tome. The idea that "jihad" is simply a spiritual "striving" seemed like whitewash, and this confirms it. Plenty of energy has gone into diving in the medieval records, and other periods, through centuries of Islamic jurisprudence and commentary in fact. I cannot, however, countenance the reliance upon fanatical personalities like Khomeini and Qutb. There's a large burden of proof that these are representative of mainstream Islamic opinion, I think. Then again I have not done the work Bostom has. The final judgment needs to wait.



2. AN EXCELLENT WORK THAT MUST BE READ BY HISTORIANS WHO ARE INTERESTED IN THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHRISTIANS AND MUSLIMS.



3. Some people hate this book, some love it. I like it alot and here is why: it explains the Jiahd as explained by the traditions of Islam, using it's own stated rules and texts. It presents the writtings to the reader of the Qur'an and Haddith and explains why and how the Jihadists of old and new do what they do and how they justify it. Unlike the apologetics on TV this isnt a smokescreen, it uses the actual sources as refferences and it is current up to the present. Not only does the author use the source materials ranging as far back as the birth of Islam, but it sues speeches from today's exponents in the lands of Dar Al Islam. if you are interested in knowing where the Jiahd comes from then this is necessary reading. This should be on the news given todays climate as it sheds alot of lioght on a for some reason taboo subject.



4. The book basically is formation of what west want to see and be happy about it. There is no difference than the author of the book and the Denmark cartoonist who is making jokes about Islam.
   
   Unfortunately west perspective is to see , read , write and act on the things they feel comfortable with. Nothing more or nothing less. A crapy book.



5. "Execution of a Moroccan Jewess" is a recreation of the actual public execution, in Tangier in the 1830s, of 17-year-old Sol Hachuel, who was falsely accused of converting to, and then renouncing, Islam. In an introductory note on the painting and on the heartbreaking tale, Bostom asserts that Sol's cruel fate was shared by countless Jews over more than a dozen centuries, wherever Muslims ruled.
   
   The Legacy of Islamic Anti-Semitism calls to mind the work of Bat Yeor, who over the past 20 years has practically single-handedly forced recognition of the oppression inherent in what she calls dhimmitude - the institution of inferiority, humiliation and obedience that Muslims demand of non-Muslims under their control.

5 comments about In the Footsteps of the Prophet: Lessons from the Life of Muhammad.

1. An Islamist apologist through-and-through. While couching the traditional Islamic double-speak in PC terms appealing to many in the West, distorts the true history of Muhammad's actions and words, as well as the real method by which Islam spread which was by the sword and not by persuasion.
   His condemnation of intentional attacks on civilians is tempered by an innocuous-seeming suggestion: that they will cease when European, U.S., and Israeli foreign policies bend to terrorists' underlying demands.
   There is nothing of worth here or in any similar work which seeks to justify Islamist aspirations and methods, while ignoring the real problem which is the reformation of Islam, necessary in order to allow it to live in peace with other beliefs and customs.



2. this is a must read for all Muslims, curious non-Muslims and Islam-haters alike.
   
   Tariq provides a beautiful meditation on the life of the Prophet, quoting great ayats from the Qur'an and hadith. IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THE PROPHET is an easily-digestable yet profound work of truth. This book provides all who read it with the essence of Islam and the life of the Prophet.



3. This book was great to show details about the prophet Mohammad's life. Tariq Ramadan captured in his very well researched book an unkown side of a great man. Unfortunately at some points he writes somewhat differential between sunni and shia, not realizing that at the prophet's time there was no such distinction.



4. Having read other biographies of Muhammad's (PBUH) life, I found this one particularly thought provoking and uplifting in that it explored the spiritual and not just historical or civic context of Muhammad's experiences. This compelling combination resulted in more than an interesting read, but a spiritual journey...along side a man many consider the most influential in human history.



5. Ramadan's scholarship, appreciation for pluralism, personal faith and passion for his Muslim heritage infuse this wonderful book. He takes us on a brief journey through the life of the prophet Muhammad and pauses to reflect on the way the Prophet used specific events to teach his contemporaries and on how those events and teachings have formed the Muslim community over the centuries.
   
   As an American, I appreciated how the book responds to Western mis-understandings of Islam (for example, the greater jihad is the personal struggle to follow Allah; the lesser jihad is armed struggle) without being defensive. As a Christian, I appreciated "going along" with Ramadan as he reflects on his faith and makes it accessible because it comes from the heart.

5 comments about The Final Move Beyond Iraq: The Final Solution While the World Sleeps.

1. 2005-07, when it still seemed likely that George Bush would expand the war in Iraq to Iran, religion-based pundits, megachurch preachers and other asortments of Christian authors created a boom in apocalyptic, Bomb Iran Now books. "The Final Move Beyond Iraq" by Mike Evans probably didn't get the same amount of PR as the latest cash cow by John Hagee, but its vision is just as frightening. Evans is part of the religious right-wing club that makes excuses for imperialism by sounding the alarm off on phantom threats like Iran's "nukes" and despite the fact that the U.S. military is essentially "broken" according to Colin Powell, they are desperately pleading for yet ANOTHER war in the Middle East. Evans is a favorite on Fox News, which should tell you something about the accuracy in his work, but let's just judge his book for what it has to say. According to Evans, the current situation involving Iraq, Iran and the occupied territories in Israel are all part of some larger plan pushing us ever closer to the Apocalypse and Second Coming of Christ. Israel is of course considered by Evans and his ilk as "God's Chosen," and us, who use Israel as a client state in the region, are therefore destined to protect Israel no matter what, not for strategic purposes, but because it's God's will, this includes needing to bomb Iran and destabilize an already volatile region. Evans, like Hagee, ignores basic modern history, presents flimsy "evidence" and coded Bible talk and interpretations (how can anyone really know what a guy in a 2,000 year old world was seeing, he wouldn't even know how to describe a helicopter, so therefore his visions could mean anything) to promote a neocon agenda of military expansionism and colonialism. The main target of the book is of course Muslim anger towards the U.S. and Israel, with Evans fully ignoring Israeli atrocities in Gaza and the West Bank or the fact that it's been proven more than once that Iraq was invaded based on false information. Evans like his colleagues takes a few looks at ancient Persian history, never exploring Middle Eastern history from say, the 1950s or 1960s, when we actively overthrew democratic, progressive governments in Iran and Pakistan. Evans also fails to explain how close U.S. client states like Saudi Arabia and Pakistan will participate in the glorious coming war, in fact, Evans doesn't even mention if anything will even happen to the U.S. domestic population (we wouldn't want to see Hagee's or Kenneth Copeland's mansions get blown up right?). The evidence Evans presents for attacking Iran is based on mostly outdated sources or "Israeli intelligence" that has now been mostly disproven, unless Evans believes the NIE report is some sort of conspiracy against his glorious leader, George W. Bush, a pity the book was published before that crucial bit of intelligence was released. Look deep into "The Final Move Beyond Iraq" and you'll see the hidden agenda of the neocons wrapped in a religious flag: Israel is the only good guy in the Middle East, superficially because Jews are "God's Chosen," but in reality because they are a vital client state for U.S. interests, Iran needs to be stopped because of its nuclear program, eventhough Israel already has nukes as well as U.S.-ally, and hotbead of radical Islamists, Pakistan. This is important, crucial information Evans conveniently leaves out. This is the typical kind of hollow propaganda used to whip-up a frenzy among religious devotees desperately waiting for deliverance from this "liberalized" culture, it is also a useful tool to make lots of money off of people's current worries, but in the end, it's just bad writing, bad history, and not worth a dollar, much less $14 and up.



2. I like this book even though it is more chicken little extremism. I was initially interested in the book because I listened to the author on a talk radio show and found his points interesting. An assistant of his even answered some questions I had via email and offered to send me a free copy. Not long into reading the book I found some contradictions to his claims and tried emailing with questions. At first I got reasonable answers, but after a while I think the questions became to difficult and required thinking out of the paranoia box. In particular I asked the author about what he thought about the over throw of the democratically elected Iranian leadership in the 1950s and wondered if that might be a reason we've had such trouble with Iran. The question was brushed off.



3. "The Final Move Beyond Iraq" by Mike Evans was the best mistake order I ever made. My husband has not put it down. He says it is enlightening and in depth with interviews with dignitaries of other countries,not often seen or heard.



4. My mother-in-law handed this book to my wife to read. I found this book lying in the toilet (which is exactly where it belongs) on the pot because my wife started reading it. So I decided to browse through the introduction section and boy was I "NOT" surprised to find such garbage.
   
   The author's target audience are those Americans who have no prior knowledge of history of US policies abroad. These are the people who are easy targets for such propaganda. Ronald Reagan famously warned that the Nicaraguans were only "2 days from Brownsville, Texas" implying that if we don't take care of the Sandinistas we might face the Nicaraguan army on US soil. Most "informed" public in the US are also aware of the Communist threat and the wars fought over such fear mongering. This book is an extension of such propaganda from the right-wing of this country.
   
   A small example is present right at the beginning of this book in the Introduction:
   
   On December 6, 2006, James Baker and Lee Hamilton released the Iraq Study Group Report on what their bipartisan commission believes should be done in Iraq. In it they recommended that:
   
   - the Golan Heights be returned to Syria (a terrorist state);
   
   - Judea and Samaria be given to a terrorist-led government (the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority);
   
   - Iran and Syria be invited to the negotiating table as a "support group" with no preconditions and UN resolutions against those two nations forgotten;
   
   - right-of-return into Israel be given to Palestinians (terrorists) in Lebanon;
   
   - Israel be required to return to pre-1967 borders (which would mean the dividing of Jerusalem);
   
   - the UN be allowed to determine the destiny of Iran?s nuclear program (which would, in my opinion, guarantee Iran with the bomb in a matter of a few years);
   
   - and amnesty be granted to terrorists (insurgents) who slaughtered American soldiers in Iraq.
   ----
   I will now point out the fallacies and ridiculously disingenuous method of writing of the above points:
   
   1) The author refers to Syria as a "terrorist state" in parentheses which is not from the ISG report in order to reiterate to the reader which side we should be on, on the issue of Golan Heights i.e. Israel's. Obviously an ignorant reader doesn't know the illegal status of Israel's occupation of Golan Heights according to the UN Charter.
   
   2) Judea and Samaria - Typical Biblical propaganda from the American Christian right and the Zionists who depend on them for their occupation of Palestine. The above territory is now known as the "West Bank" but the author tries to stir up religious emotions of the reader by referring to their beloved bible in order to grant silent legitimacy to Israel for their occupation.
   
   The other lie is the fact that this point doesn't feature in the ISG because
   a) It wasn't proposed in such a way
   b) Hamas is in control of Gaza not West Bank
   
   3) Iran and Syria negotiations: What are the authors preconditions? What right do we have to place preconditions on these states for negotiations? Isn't that the purpose of negotiations to make the other side agree to some conditions?
   
   4) Right of return for "terrorists" - This is my favorite. The word "terrorists" is placed next to Palestinians. You don't need to have knowledge of history to know that this is not only illogical but WRONG to label all palestinians as terrorists.
   
   The other aspect of this is those refugees were driven out through systematic deportation in 1948 by Ben-Guiron and gang which is now being found out after Israel opened up its archives in the last 2 decades. So much for a state formed to save a population from persecution!
   
   5) Israel and pre-1967 borders and dividing of Jerusalem: For am American who is well content with the fact that his own country was formed through occupation, it won't be hard to make him digest this idea. Pre-1967 borders means the armistice lines drawn after 1948 war when the UN Security Council determined the rights of State of Israel. Ironically the author fails to bring up the innumerable resolutions passed by UN against Israeli occupation of "Judea and Samaria" like he does for Iran
   
   6) UN be allowed to determine Iran's nukes: Its not as uncommon for right-winged pundits to promote unilateral action circumventing the rules and regulations followed by the International Community through the UN. We are Americans, we don't need to follow rules because they're for everyone else.
   
   Hey Mike, do you want to talk about Israel's 200 nuclear warheads which is a fact admitted by the CIA?
   
   7) Amnesty for insurgents: These insurgents happen to be Iraqi citizens fighting against occupation by a foreign country. They also happen to have the support of the bulk of the population. I don't remember reading the word "amnesty" anywhere in the ISG report but we can't expect anything better from Mike Evans. The ISG report calls for formation of a unity government between Sunnis and Shias which if not done will lead to further violence. That isn't amnesty but a logical approach. However, promoters of the Wild West style democracy want to punish everybody for fighting America who btw lied their way to Baghdad.
   
   The book is full of such ridiculous comments, lop sided reviews and misquoted texts (with parentheses) designed to promote an agenda and brainwash an already ignorant reader. I didn't even want to give this book a star but I clicked on it accidentally.



5. The book is okay, but it is overrated. I also found dozens of copies at my local dollar store shortly after delivery.

5 comments about Dreams Of Trespass: Tales Of A Harem Girlhood.

1. I found this book to be entertaining, educational, inspirational and thought provoking all at once. I personally and Americans in general are largely confused and misinformed about the concept of the harem and how the women in them lived; and it is no wonder or surprise that we are! It seems that even within the high walls and locked gates of the harem the residents cannot agree on the subject! What is a harem? Is it a den of iniquity? A commune? A brothel? A prison? An extended family? A refuge?
   
   Told from the perspective of a 6-9 year old girl growing up in a domestic harem in Morocco in the late 1940s, this book has a freshness and naiveté that only a child can muster as she ponders her place in her home, society, and the world at large.
   
   Her observations of the world around her are uncensored, and guide the reader to a greater understanding not only of other cultures and other women, but of our relationships and ourselves. Only a child has the innocent courage to stand up and say, "The Emperor has no clothes!"
   
   As I learned about another world, I began also to draw parallels to may own life and current times. Changing laws does not grant freedom to individuals. Here in America we have all the freedoms that these women were deprived of and fought for, and yet in many cases we remain trapped- prisoners of our fears, our habits, our insecurities, and our weaknesses.
   
   In this book I found lots of hope and inspiration, reminding me of many ways to experience freedom inwardly- without the necessity of changing outward circumstances.
   © 2006 Shahina



2. The book was great and interesting. Amazon sent it very quick.



3. I couldn't help but fall asleep whilst reading this book. I only was able to go through about a little over a half, mostly because I was required to read it. Generally, the book is about a middle eastern girl living in a Harem and surrounded by the conflicting Western Power, the French Army. Lots of battles with tradition and western cultures, and primarily about the rift between men and women. So you're in for a subtle yet quite obvious gender conflict, which was in my opinion awfully sexist (I know it's from the view of a woman but that doesn't take away from the fact that she explicitly tries to write as if she were a child again with "innocence" yet fails because of her mature agenda). The author, Mernissi, spends about 10-15 pages per chapter driveling on about the most useless facts or coincidences. Just when you think she's reaching her point and finally bear fruit, it's the start of a new chapter and another take on a topic or segment of her life that is completely irrelevant.



4. I read this after returning from Morocco. The insight into what life used to be like for most women enriched my understanding of the culture which I found fascinating. I'd spoken with several women while in the country who are "liberated" but heard none of the story of the lives of women who adhere to the old traditions. I saw many others who still live behind closed walls. This is the story of the latter group's growing up years that I couldn't have gotten otherwise.



5. Ms. Mernissi states that "The frontier is in the mind of the powerful", and that "...looking for the frontier has become my life's occupation. Anxiety eats at me whenever I cannot situate the geometric line organizing my powerlessness." This book is a very moving first-hand account of the secluded life of a young girl, born into a prosperous family in Fez in the 1940s. She is confined in a harem, which in this case consists of the women and children of an extended family, imprisoned behind walls and a guarded gate for their own protection in an occupied city. "When Allah created the earth, said Father, he separated men from women, and put a sea between Muslims and Christians for a reason. Harmony exists when each group respects the prescribed limits of the other. Trespassing leads only to sorrow and unhappiness. But women dreamed of trespassing all the time. The world beyond the gate was their obsession."
   
   Throughout the book she illustrates the ongoing attempts of her mother and grandmother to discover the outside world, establish their individual identity, and exercise some tiny bit of control over their own lives. Her mother listens to radio Cairo when the men are out of the house, and despite her mother-in-law's disapproval, embroiders birds on her clothes instead of traditional patterns. Although her mother is barred from attending literacy classes by a vote of the leading men of the family, Fatima and her cousins are allowed to attend public school when the country's religious leaders vote to support women's education and schools are opened to female students. Suddenly the outside world is open to her, but she still feels powerless. Her Aunt Habiba provides liberating advice: "It is not enough to reject this courtyard - you need to have a vision of the meadows with which you want to replace it." Fatima must now discover her unique, personal dream, the vision that would give her direction and light. This is a radical change: she is not just a daughter and future wife and mother, she is also an individual with unique and valuable gifts to share with the world.

2 comments about Spark Notes No Fear Shakespeare Othello (SparkNotes No Fear Shakespeare).

1. The Play, the Book, the Format---all outstanding, absolutely outstanding...With the original text on the left page and a modern easy to read and understand text on the right, Shakespeare reads like a Vince Flynn novel--well, almost. It really opens up the story, the ideas, the characters and the struggles. (Iago is still reprehensible! In any time, in any format!!) And in Act 5, "Othello" turns into a page turner, like a modern day novel. Who would have ever thought it!!! Good way of doing it, well done. The Bard is alive and well...And we are all the better for it.



2. As my first introduction to Shakespeare working in a senior high school collaborative English class, this book helped me enormously with its Modern Day English interpretation on one side of the book and the Shakespearean writing on the other which follows the regular novels. This proved to be a lifesaver!

5 comments about Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources.

1. Most books of this nature are more often than not loosely translated from Arabic-written texts ensuing in bad grammar, and a dire story line. But as this is written in English it thankfully avoids all of the above. What I love about this biography is that Ling's explains in great detail not only the life and mission of Prophet Muhammad, but also the fundamentals of Islam. It begins with the significance of the Kabaa and ends with the death of the Prophet whilst illuminating everything in between. This book is also broken down into several chapters allowing for an easy read.
   
   Even though this is a great source of Islamic knowledge, it may be a difficult read for some non-Muslim readers. As advice, I would recommend this as a follow up to a simpler biography [of which I don't know any that Amazon or a ordinary bookstore would sell -- sorry].



2. The book was easy reading. Very straight forward. I liked it. Informative and interesting.



3. This is a book to keep for life, to lend and EDUCATE your friends and family.
   The author has simply laid down the life of Prophet Muhammad (saws) for both Muslims and non Muslims to appreciate his greatness .
   It is in great detail, and it is amazing to see how much Muslims know about the life of their Prophet, as compared to the LITTLE Christians know about Jesus.



4. Excellent work by Martin Lings ( who has now reverted to Islam). Alham dullia, may Allah guide us all on to the rightious path.



5. Its hard to put down the book,once you have started it.The effect is almost like a movie,you are restless till you have seen it all.Particularly,Martin Lings did an excellent job of making the reader familier with the Arab culture 1400 years ago, a must have, while studying the life of the Prophet(pbuh).
   With Muslims from diverse cultural backgrouns, this is an excellent source.

5 comments about Religion of Peace?: Why Christianity Is and Islam Isn't.

1. I studied Islam on my own for 6 months last year. I read ONLY Muslim texts and avoided anything like this until I could form my own opinion. I have 5 English translations of the Qur'an, Bukhrai and Muslim (collections of hadith) and Tafsir Ibn Kathir. I have read as much of it as I could stand.
   
   You can do it the hard way like I did, or you can read this book. Spencer has Islam spot on accurate. Islam is not a religion of peace. In fact it's more of a tribal code of law than a religion. The Islamic world view divides the world into two camps, the House of Islam, and the House of War. If you aren't Muslim, you are in the House of War.
   
   There may be moderate Muslims, but there is no moderate Islam. Learn it the easy way by reading Spencer, or learn it the hard way and pick up a Qur'an and hadith, but learn it! You need to learn the truth for yourself.



2. It's astonishing that other reviewers think this book presents "facts". It is a starkly ignorant book (and this is an understatement) of vast swathes of Islamic history which, if examined, would disprove its main theses almost point by point (for e.g. that Islam is the "religion of the sword", rejects rationality, etc). Islam is not perfect, and no religion is, but it is downright dishonest to take a look at a book (the Quran) and base your judgment of an entire culture on it. Look at the history of a culture and how it USED the book as a civilizational project. In this respect, Islam has been astonishingly open and tolerant. Again, I am not saying Islam is perfect, but the above picture is so ignorant and biased that it doesn't take much research to show that it is grossly distorting.
   
   An even cursory acquaintance with Islamic civilization and history ought to dispel such long-standing ideologies as the above (not to mention that Christianity waged battles of the sword in the Mideast and the Americas of horrifying proportions, in which millions of people died (the Spanish Conquistadors or Columbus were peaceful Christians?!! read the historical record and see for yourself what a wonderful and loving Christians they were). Despite that, and despite being a non-religious person, I condemn neither Islam nor Christianity wholesale as faiths). Religions are not coherent bodies of belief; hell, not even philosophy is, and it is one of the most systematic attempts in human history to systematize our beliefs about the world, so how could religion be?
   
   For the historically challenged like our author:
   even in medieval times, there were debates over the question of reason and its relation to faith in Islam. The great Muslim philosopher Averroes went so far as to say that philosopher and prophets are on an equal footing, i.e. that prophets have no more claim on the truth than do philosophers. There were even atheists in the history of Islam, one of them for instance was the great physicist Ibn al-Haitham, and the great poet al-Ma'ari.
   finally, Islamic philosophy and science had an enormous impact on Western thought and have been one of the prime sources (often unacknowledged) behind the development of Western modernity. They went far beyond the Greek philosophers and scientists they learned from and developed the scientific method before even the great Bacon. read a good history of science and you'll see that immediately (for instance the renowned BBC science historian James Burke in his series which you can find on youtube, called The Day the Universe Changed, shows this very clearly. And that's just he tip of the iceberg as far as Muslim contributions to science and rational inquiry go).
   so one can only conclude that far from Islam being irrational, it is the book that is.
   
   so please spare us the hate-mongering in the guise of "facts", since the book is clearly deeply under-infomred! and please dear reviewers who bought this cheap trick of a book, don't be so gullible as to base wholesale condemnations of entire civilizations and cultures on one or even several biased accounts. surely one has to be more responsible and inquire and search for oneself what the truth of such matters is. after all, isn't this an Emersonian (and American) virtue, of "self-reliance"? or do you simply abandon critical judgment and rationality when Islam is under discussion?
   so before accusing others of being irrational barbarians, let's look at ourselves in the mirror when we so heinously misrepresent and condemn an ENTIRE civilization. we ought to be more responsible as citizens of a democracy.



3. Robert Spencer is among only a handful of people in the United States that is not only a walking wealth of information on the religion of Islam, but has the courage to speak his convictions. This is a truly courageous act for which he receives numerous death threats from those "Religion of Peace" adherents. If you want to experience a very small taste of what his courage brings Mr. Spencer for exercising his freedom of speech rights, just peruse the 1-star ratings on this book. Mr. Spencer has always maintained a standing invitation to anyone wanting to debate his facts in an open and public discussion. Few have attempted to do so and those who have, always came out the losers. The reason is that Mr. Spencer does not speak from his emotions or personal bias, but from the scriptures of the Koran, the Sira and Hadith, as determined by the major religious teachings of all the major Sunni and Shia theological leaders in the world today.
   His many detractors don't offer any evidence that what Mr. Spencer writes and says is in error, they simply do what ignorant bullies do the world over. They threaten and resort to character assassination, which is all they are left with when confronted by the truth. Almost every single book authored by Mr. Spencer has made the New York Times Bestseller list, and for good reason. Hasn't anyone noticed how the "Religion of Peace" followers rioted over the Danish cartoons, the short video "Fitna," the murder of Danish citizen Theo Van Gogh, the endless fatwa's calling for the murder of those who speak out against the "Religion of Peace," such as Salman Rushdie, author of The Satanic Verses? Has anyone noticed the worldwide celebratory crowds of thousands of Muslims around the world, who are so quick to publicly celebrate the Iranian takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran in 1979? Or the bombing of the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut in 1983? And of course the worldwide euphoric eruption of sheer joy from Muslims around the world on 9/11?
   More to the point, has any one else noticed the deafening silence from the Muslim community against these same acts? Mr. Spencer's book "Religion of Peace" is factual and well written. I would highly recommend any of his books and eagerly await his future ones as well. If you don't want to know what is going on in the world of Dar al-Islam then go back to sleep, but if you are interested in your future and the future of our children, then I would read every article or book written by the superbly knowledgeable and talented Robert Spencer.



4. Spencer is well studied in islam... This is more of an eye openening / informative book rather than an "islam bashing" book as the bad rerviews here accuse. If you want to understand the jihadists of today you must understand the historical / religious roots of their belief. Spencer points out text in the koran / hadiths to the modern jihad and helps remove the whitewash of the "religion of peace". I thought it was a good read.



5. Robert Spencer produces a hateful, revisionist, and triumphalistic argument about why he thinks Christianity and the Western world (he conflates the two) are superior to Islam. Christianity is a religion of peace and dialogue and Islam a religion of terror and suppression. He accuses Christianity's detractors of "cherry-picking" evidence of the support of violence in the Old and New Testaments, but then goes on to do the same in his treatment of the Qu'ran and Christian history itself.
   But the most basic error he makes is to dismiss the long and bloody history of Christian cruelty, forced conversion, slavery, destruction of native cultures, and environmental disaster with a flick of his temporal wand. Yes, there were Christians who did such things in the past, he notes, but this was not essential to Christian's message of peace and love for others. Besides, most of these more troublesome episodes of Christian history were not as bad as they seemed and have now passed. Christian anti-Semitism was not all that bad (especially compared with Muslim anti-Semitism). Slavery was a mistake and Christians finally figured that out.
   Even if one accepts the latter point that such Christian atrocity-mongering has diminished (which is eminently debatable with good Christians in America still enthused for racial and gender inequality and positively foaming at the mouth for guns, capital punishment, and a vast nuclear arsenal) it is patently false to suggest that it was anything other than the Enlightenment, the throwing off of theocracies, and the embrace of secular, constitutional democracies, that spurred our best, though always fragile, efforts to live with our differences without killing each other.
   No one is arguing, as Spencer seems to believe, that there are not Islamic terrorists and theocrats who wish to suppress people with Sharia law. They use religion to justify their violence. Yet Spencer ignores the consensus that most of the anger that drives such things is political rather than religious. It is anger at Western cultural hegemony, globalization, and the inequality of wealth that feeds the discontent of radical Islam.
   Why should Christians who do evil get the benefit of the doubt that they simply missed the point of their faith's deeper teachings on peace in the pursuit of more worldly and self-serving ends, while Muslims do so because they are just following their religion? Because Spencer wants to goad on the great "Clash of Civilizations" view of the world and take up good, loving, Christian arms, if necessary, to defend the great Western civilization of peace and reason. With books like these, he and his ilk may just succeed.