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Islam

Books, Ebooks, book stores & publishers

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Topics about Islam discussed in this essay:

• Books
• Free Ebook "translations" of the Qur'an
• Bookstores
• Publishers

Books about Islam:

• Maria M Ebrahimji & Zahra T Suratwala, Editors, "I Speak for Myself: American Women on Being Muslim" White Cloud Press, (2011) Read reviews or order this book safely from Amazon.com online book store
  
  Webmaster's note: I found this book fascinating. It contains the personal stories of 40 young Muslim women born in the U.S. and includes their conflicts over clothing, living within a minority religion in an overwhelmingly Christian culture, combattingthe restrictive expectations of women expressed by many Muslims, overcoming hostility -- particularly after 9/11, etc. There is no better way to understand Muslims in America than to read personal stories of young adults.

  According to the Amazon.com review: "Muslim American women are the subject of endless discussions regarding their role in society, their veils as symbols of oppression or of freedom, their identity, their patriotism, their womanhood. Yet the voices and life experiences of Muslim American women themselves are rarely heard in the loud rhetoric surrounding the question of Muslims in America. Finally, in I Speak for Myself, 40 American women under the age of 40, share their experiences of their lives as Muslim women in America. While their commonality is faith and citizenship, their voices and their messages are very different.
  
  Readers of I Speak for Myself are presented with a kaleidoscope of stories, artfully woven together around the central idea of limitlessness and individuality. A common theme linking these intimate self-portraits will be the way each woman uniquely defies labeling, simply by defining for herself what it means to be American and Muslim and female. Each personal story is a contribution to the larger narrative of life stories and life work of a new generation of Muslim women.
  
  There are approximately six million Muslims living in the United States and over one billion around the world. While the events of 9/11 certainly engaged Americans with the religion of Islam, many enduring stereotypes continue to belittle the Muslim American experience; this often leads to a monolithic interpretation of Islam. Such a treatment is especially inappropriate when reflecting on the Muslim American identity, which is by far one of the most culturally, ethnically, and socially diverse of any in the Islamic world. Women of the Muslim community in America could be described as both patriots and practitioners (of faith). Their experiences call for a body of literature that reflects how they celebrate and live Islam in distinctive ways.
  
  In the wake of the current rising tide of Islamophobia (see Time Magazine, Aug. 30, 2010), I Speak for Myself is a must read for Americans seeking understanding of Islam from young women who were all born in the USA."

• Hamid Algar, "Wahhabism: A critical essay," Islamic Publications International, (2002). Read reviews or order this book safely from Amazon.com online book store
  
  
• Karen Armstrong:
  • "Islam: A short history," (2000). Karen Armstrong was once a Roman Catholic nun and is now a leading scholar on religious affairs.
    
    According to a Amazon.com book review: Armstrong sketches the arc of a story that begins with the stirring of revelation in an Arab businessman named Muhammad. His concern with the poor who were being left behind in the blush of his society's new prosperity sets the tone for the tale of a culture that values community as a manifestation of God. Muhammad's ideas catch fire, quickly blossoming into a political empire. As the empire expands and the once fractured Arabs subdue and overtake the vast Persian domain, the story of a community becomes a panoramic drama. With great dexterity, Armstrong narrates the Sunni-Shi'ite schism, the rise of Persian influence, the clashes with Western crusaders and Mongolian conquerors, and the spiritual explorations that traced the route to God. Armstrong brings us through the debacle of European colonialism right up to the present day, putting Islamic fundamentalism into context as part of a worldwide phenomenon."
    
    Ray Olson of Booklists writes that this book is: "An invaluable primer for non-Muslims." Read reviews by Muslims and non-Muslims, or order this book
    
    
  • "Muhammad:A prophet for our time," HarperOne, (2007). Read reviews or order this book
    
    According to Ray Olson's review: "Armstrong's second biography of Islam's prophet is lucid and stylish, never condescending. It puts the best face possible on its subject. The Muhammad it projects gave his followers 'a mission: to create a just and decent society, in which all members were treated with respect.' Moreover, Armstrong's Muhammad behaved justly and decently while he lived, though perhaps a bit according to the stringent standards of Arab culture at the time."
    
    
• John L. Esposito:
  • "What Everyone Needs to Know about Islam," Oxford University Press, (2002) Read reviews or order this book
    
    According to Publishers Weekly review: "An excellent primer on all aspects of Islam. The question-and-answer-format allows readers to skip ahead to areas that interest them, including hot-button issues such as 'Why are Muslims so violent?' or 'Why do Muslim women wear veils and long garments?' In his answers, which are anywhere from a paragraph to several pages long, Esposito elegantly educates the reader through what the Quran said, how Muslims are influenced by their local cultures, and how the unique politics of Islamic countries affect Muslims' views."
    
    
  • "Who Speaks for Islam? What a billion Muslims really think," Gallup Press, (2008). Read reviews or order this book
    
    Amazon.com review: "In a post-9/11 world, many Americans conflate the mainstream Muslim majority with the beliefs and actions of an extremist minority. But what do the world’s Muslims think about the West, or about democracy, or about extremism itself? Who Speaks for Islam? spotlights this silenced majority. The book is the product of a mammoth six-year study in which the Gallup Organization conducted tens of thousands of hour-long, face-to-face interviews with residents of more than 35 predominantly Muslim nations — urban and rural, young and old, men and women, educated and illiterate. It asks the questions everyone is curious about: Why is the Muslim world so anti-American? Who are the extremists? Is democracy something Muslims really want? What do Muslim women want? The answers to these and other pertinent, provocative questions are provided not by experts, extremists, or talking heads, but by empirical evidence — the voices of a billion Muslims."
    
    
• Khaled Abou El Fadl:
  • "Speaking in God's Name," Oneworld Publications, (2001) Read reviews or order this book
    
    
  • "The place of tolerance in Islam," Beacon Press (2002). Read reviews or order this book
    
    
• Mark Gabriel, "Islam and Terrorism," Charisma House, (2002). Read reviews or order this book
  
  
• Bernard Lewis and Buntzie Ellis Churchill: "Islam: The Religion and the People," Wharton School Publishing, (2008) Read reviews or order this book
  
  According to William P. Collins of the Library of Congress, the book is: "... an accessible introduction to Muslims and their faith. In clear language, the authors cover the faith's development, its five pillars, Scripture and tradition, law, the mosque, diversity, sectarian divisions, government, economics, women, dress, language, war and peace, and radicalism. There are three particular strengths. First, Lewis and Churchill insist that Islam cannot be reduced to extremes as either a bloodthirsty creed or solely a message of peace. The Qur'an advocates a range of responses according to specific circumstances. Second, the authors humanize Islam by including insets on "Islamic humor" in every chapter. Third, the book replaces dangerous characterizations of Islam as an enemy with an understanding of Islam as a faith intimately connected to Christianity and Judaism. Through understanding Islam, readers may see that the minority who espouse a radicalized totalitarian version of Islam represent neither the faith nor most of its followers. Highly recommended for all libraries."
  
  
• Omid Safi, "Progressive Muslims: On justice, gender and pluralism," Oneworld Publications, (2003). Read reviews or order this book
  
  
• Michael Wolfe, Ed., "Taking Back Islam: American Muslims Reclaim Their Faith," Rodale Press, (2002). Read reviews or order this book

Free Ebook "translations" of the Qur'an into the English language:

Traditionally, Muslims do not recognize translations of the Qur'an into other languages. They are regarded as interpretations. They are availalable in Generated HTML, EPUB , Kindle, Plucker, QiOO Mobile, plain text, and other formats.

• Abdullah Yusuf Ali, Marmaduke W. Pickthall, & M.H. Shakir, "Three translations of the Qur'an side by side,"Free download from Project Gutenberg at: http://www.gutenberg.org/
  
  
• The Deen Show has 8 English interpretations of the Qur'an for free download. See: http://thedeenshow.com/
  
  
• J.M. Rodwell, Al Qur'an at: http://www.gutenberg.org/
  
  
• George Sale, Al Qur'an at: http://www.gutenberg.org/

Bookstores:

• Amazon.com's online bookstore lists the following books on Islam:
  
  
  
  If you see a generic Amazon ad here, please click on your browser's refresh key.
  
  
• HilalPlaza.com is a source of books about Islam and the Arabic language. See: http://www.hilalplaza.com/

Islamic publishers:

	Dar-us-Salam Publications produces Islamic books in Arabic, English, French, Spanish, Urdu and other languages. See: http://www.dar-us-salam.com/
	River Garden Arts, an Islamic book publisher, invites all Muslims to share their stories in the new book: "Coming to Islam: A Muslim Anthology, Volumes 8 & 9." See: http://members.aol.com/

Copyright © 1995 to 2012 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Last update: 2010-JAN-15
Hyperlinks checked: 2012-JAN-24
Author: B. A. Robinson

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