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Review
?"The Islamist" is a wake-up call for Britain.?
--"The Guardian"
?All who glibly generalise about the no-man?s-land between terrorism and multi-culturalism should read this articulate and impassioned book.?
--"The Times"
?"The Islamist" should be prescribed like medicine. Whatever your prejudices, it will eat into them like acid.?
--"Daily Telegraph"
?"The Islamist" could not be more timely.?
--"Observer"
?"The Islamist" is first and foremost a riveting personal narrative, but it also carries a powerful?message.?
--"Literary Review"
?Ed Husain deserves enormous credit?It is an extraordinarily well written memoir.?
--"Mail on Sunday"
?Unique? A call to ordinary Muslims to reclaim their faith?
--"Asian Leader"
?Courageous memoir?
--"Evening Standard"
?Ed Husain is the man we were all looking for after the 7/7 bombings?Not to help police with their investigations?but to help a stunned nation un
--"The Guardian"
?All who glibly generalise about the no-man?s-land between terrorism and multi-culturalism should read this articulate and impassioned book.?
--"The Times"
?"The Islamist" should be prescribed like medicine. Whatever your prejudices, it will eat into them like acid.?
--"Daily Telegraph"
?"The Islamist" could not be more timely.?
--"Observer"
?"The Islamist" is first and foremost a riveting personal narrative, but it also carries a powerful?message.?
--"Literary Review"
?Ed Husain deserves enormous credit?It is an extraordinarily well written memoir.?
--"Mail on Sunday"
?Unique? A call to ordinary Muslims to reclaim their faith?
--"Asian Leader"
?Courageous memoir?
--"Evening Standard"
?Ed Husain is the man we were all looking for after the 7/7 bombings?Not to help police with their investigations?but to help a stunned nation un
Simon Jenkins, Sunday Times
All who glibly generalise about the no-man's-land between terrorism and multiculturalism should read this articulate and impassioned book.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
It is a mark of self-confidence: the English have not spent a great deal of time defining themselves because they haven't needed to. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
It is a mark of self-confidence: the English have not spent a great deal of time defining themselves because they haven't needed to. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
17 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
I couldn't stop thinking about this book when I had read it. I thank Ed Husain for being brave enough to write it. A difficult and compelling read, it scared the heck out of me, but I think everyone should read it - it will open your eyes.
77 of 88 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
The author is probably the most religiously sincere man I have ever come across, and his current faith is revealed by the end of the book in a way which managed to impress even me, a life-long atheist with a very cynical view of all religion.
It is Husain's journey to this point that provides the narrative, and in his calm and transparent prose the author has managed to pen the most terrifying story I have ever read.
Here was an ordinary British Muslim with a loving and supportive family who started life a poster-boy for integration as a colour and faith-blind student at a multi-ethnic primary school. Without personal tragedy or disaster, without any poor experiences at the hands of the "Establishment", this happy schoolboy found himself recruiting "soldiers of Islam" to destroy his country, and toppled on the brink of taking that route himself.
So complete was his indoctrination that even years after his epiphany he found himself experiencing a uniquely Islamic doublethink when it came to the traditions and institutions of his country.
What terrifies about this book is the sheer ordinariness of Hussain's experience. Through no great genius or inspiration on the part of those who recruited him to the Islamist cause he found himself turning his back on family and nation, burning with a hatred for everyone outside his own small clique.
Husain was bright enough to see the cracks in Islamism - the lack of genuine Koranic scholarship, the transmutation of religion into politics, the racism at the heart of Saudi Arabia, and the exploitation of ignorance and disillusionment among young men. It is clear from his experience that most are not so well equipped.
This book provides an explanation not only for recent events in the UK but also across the wider world. A must-read for anyone with an interest in the future.
It is Husain's journey to this point that provides the narrative, and in his calm and transparent prose the author has managed to pen the most terrifying story I have ever read.
Here was an ordinary British Muslim with a loving and supportive family who started life a poster-boy for integration as a colour and faith-blind student at a multi-ethnic primary school. Without personal tragedy or disaster, without any poor experiences at the hands of the "Establishment", this happy schoolboy found himself recruiting "soldiers of Islam" to destroy his country, and toppled on the brink of taking that route himself.
So complete was his indoctrination that even years after his epiphany he found himself experiencing a uniquely Islamic doublethink when it came to the traditions and institutions of his country.
What terrifies about this book is the sheer ordinariness of Hussain's experience. Through no great genius or inspiration on the part of those who recruited him to the Islamist cause he found himself turning his back on family and nation, burning with a hatred for everyone outside his own small clique.
Husain was bright enough to see the cracks in Islamism - the lack of genuine Koranic scholarship, the transmutation of religion into politics, the racism at the heart of Saudi Arabia, and the exploitation of ignorance and disillusionment among young men. It is clear from his experience that most are not so well equipped.
This book provides an explanation not only for recent events in the UK but also across the wider world. A must-read for anyone with an interest in the future.
34 of 39 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
This is a fascinating book. I read a broad selection of the criticisms of this book in an attempt to gauge its authenticity. Much of the criticism is about his "Muslim credentials" and his portrayal of specific Islamic groups and it is quite easy to understand why the said groups have a vested interest in attacking these portrayals. Whilst I do not doubt for one moment Ed Hussein portrayal, for me this is irrelevant to the central point of the book.
The book's central aim is to demonstrate how a young person born into a Western liberal democracy with no particular grievances against the people around them, can justify indiscriminately murdering the very people they have grown up with. This book achieves this and reveals how young naive minds can be twisted by an irrational hatred and shows how religion can be used to persuade otherwise good people to commit horrendously evil acts. We are given an insight into the minds of certain Islamic groups, who beliefs and aims are to destroy liberal democracy and to live in a Caliphate. This kind of Islam has been allowed to flourish because of the tenets of freedom of speech and religious tolerance, values that our society holds so dear. Ironically this a freedom that would certainly not be allowed in Islamic societies such as Saudi Arabia, or the society so desired by certain Islamic groups in this country.
As I have mention much of the criticism of this book is from Muslim writers, but there is also a fair bit from the liberal press. The book does quite clearly identify an Islamic threat and in doing so gives plenty ammunition to far right views. Certain liberal writers (and I consider myself a liberal) condemn the book, as they fear it could be used as a recruiting call to the far right, not because they necessarily disagree with the books opinions and statements.
I have only given this book 4 stars, but I can't fault it really I just reserve 5 stars for a truly life changing book.
The book's central aim is to demonstrate how a young person born into a Western liberal democracy with no particular grievances against the people around them, can justify indiscriminately murdering the very people they have grown up with. This book achieves this and reveals how young naive minds can be twisted by an irrational hatred and shows how religion can be used to persuade otherwise good people to commit horrendously evil acts. We are given an insight into the minds of certain Islamic groups, who beliefs and aims are to destroy liberal democracy and to live in a Caliphate. This kind of Islam has been allowed to flourish because of the tenets of freedom of speech and religious tolerance, values that our society holds so dear. Ironically this a freedom that would certainly not be allowed in Islamic societies such as Saudi Arabia, or the society so desired by certain Islamic groups in this country.
As I have mention much of the criticism of this book is from Muslim writers, but there is also a fair bit from the liberal press. The book does quite clearly identify an Islamic threat and in doing so gives plenty ammunition to far right views. Certain liberal writers (and I consider myself a liberal) condemn the book, as they fear it could be used as a recruiting call to the far right, not because they necessarily disagree with the books opinions and statements.
I have only given this book 4 stars, but I can't fault it really I just reserve 5 stars for a truly life changing book.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
An eye-opener
A good read and insight into Ed Husain's personal journey. A must-read for anyone with an interest in the future.
Published 1 month ago by Dockers
Irreconcilable Islam
This is a harrowing and scary little book, and a fair indication that Islam is as irreconcilable to Muslims as it is to non-Muslims. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Mr. Thomas Graham
A personal insight into today's Islamic community
Having just finished reading this book today I felt that it had affected me sufficiently to make me want to write a review. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Cleona Wallace
Misguided youth becomes misguided man
This starts out as an interesting story, informative in places and helpful to people interested in radical political Islam. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Agent
Islamification and the truth
Excellent book that all UK residents and others should read. I now understand how decent people can become radicalized by some members of the Islamic community and how Islam is... Read more
Published 15 months ago by Rich Reckless
Alternative View
Bought this for my wife. She has said that it is very engaging as it gives an insight into an otherwisw unfathomable world.
Published 16 months ago by J
Very interesting, but he's not really a great writer
I was fascinated in the topic enough to read it all the way through, but it did at times feel like a struggle.
Published 17 months ago by Southampton girl
A must read for White British people
I am not in the habit of reviewing books as I believe that you should read for enjoyment or knowledge, not because someone else has opinion on a subject. Read more
Published 17 months ago by Martin UK
Well intentioned but repetitive
The objective is very noble but after a point, the book gets quite repetitive and meanders around. I even felt that the author was simply making up experiences just to fill in the... Read more
Published 20 months ago by Sridhar
It's OK.
I read this book at the end of a dissertation I wrote on Wahhabism and Sufism. I was touched by certain sections of this book and I was also pleased to see that a large amount of... Read more
Published 21 months ago by AG KOTIA
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