2007-09-18 Excellent except for one drawback

Highly recommended if only to understand Muslim's and the Muslim way of life better. It's an in-depth look at the religion and the practices of Islam. However it goes beyond these and discusses pressing issues such as Terrorism, Islamic Feminism and the Environment. You learn about the different sects of Islam, and how what we often consider 'Muslim' is merely cultural practices and nothing to do with the religion itself. It explains that misinterpretation of the Qu'ran is common place by Muslims hence for example why we see women often treated as second class citizens and terrorism at the hands of militants.

The only drawback to this book is that there is some bias from the author who is Muslim himself. The book is concise and factual, however especially in the last chapter we see talk of how Islam should spread across the West as if it was the only fully worthwhile religion. After reading this book you realize that Islam, like most religions, has many strong points but also some flaws due to misinterpretation but also the unwillingness by many to bring the religion into the 21st Century.