Islam Explained - by Tahar Ben Jelloun (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

In an accessible question-and-answer format, Islam Explained clarifies the main tenets of Islam, the major landmarks in Islamic history, and the current politics of Islamic fundamentalism. The book also sheds light on the key words that have come to dominate the media--terrorist, crusade, jihad, fundamentalist, fatwa--offering lucid and balanced explanations, not only for youngsters but also for the general reader.

Islam Explained is at once an essential introduction to one of the world's great religions and a cry for tolerance and understanding in deeply troubled times.

Review Quotes

"A slender but ambitious treatise designed to make sense of Islam to young Western readers." --Publishers Weekly

"A valuable addition to a growing public discourse. . . . As a liberal Muslim voice of reconciliation, heartbreak, and compassion, it is priceless." --Booklist


"A slender but ambitious treatise designed to make sense of Islam to young Western readers." -Publishers Weekly

"A valuable addition to a growing public discourse. . . . As a liberal Muslim voice of reconciliation, heartbreak, and compassion, it is priceless." -Booklist

About the Author

Winner of the 1994 Prix Maghreb, Tahar Ben Jelloun was born in 1944 in Fez, Morocco, and emigrated to France in 1961. A novelist, essayist, critic, and poet, he is a regular contributor to Le Monde, La Répubblica, El País, and Panorama. His novels include The Sacred Night, which received the Prix Goncourt in 1987, and Corruption (The New Press).