The No-Nonsense Guide to Islam (No-Nonsense Guides) [Paperback]

In other hands, such a treatment of Islam would have been unremarkable. What highlights this as a work of distinction is the way it consciously sets itself aside from forces informing popular Muslim understandings of their own history. For example, contemporary Islamic cliches regarding Islam's grand legacy to the West are properly situated in Europe's colonial take-over of the Muslim world, where envy and fear drove the colonial invaders to crush key facets of Islamic learning and culture.

The result is an understanding of the Muslim faith situated in history and contemporary realities, but which never stoops to cheap 'West bashing', instead drawing on analyses from development studies, sociology and politics. Despite the relative brevity of the book - 142 pages - Sardar and Davies seek to clarify rather than simplify a progressive Muslim analyses of Islam. The result is a book likely to appeal to both Muslims and non-Muslims alike.

For Muslims, this book is worth reading for simply for its final chapter, with its call to reform. The demand that Muslims learn how their values 'are not a seperate order but an integral part of the common concerns of contemporary human dilemmas' is about as potent a summary of progressive Muslim concerns as I have yet heard.

If you are thinking about a book on Islam for non-Muslims new to the faith, or a book for anyone seeking to make sense of the challenges faced by Muslims in 21st century , then this book bests both tasks.

It could have made a list of the perceptions to be discussed, such as treatment of women or tendency to violence, explained the grounds of these perceptions, such as 9/11 or physical punishment, outlined the rules of Islam, how it respects human and even animal life, making it sinful to slaughter an animal that is not to be eaten and protecting others, addressing the confounding problems, such as political trouble in the middle east and spread of crime in the absence of good penal system.

It never addressed the background within which actions can be seen, for example the fact that women get half men’s share of inheritance, yet have no financial obligations, which is more than fair. The fact that Islam ended female infanticide, stressed good education of girls, stopped women themselves being inherited ..etc are hardly mentioned.

Perhaps the biggest problem of all is the complete failure to explain the thinking in Islam, where a specified set of rules must be followed. This is done as a matter of obeying Allaah (God), and proving belief and faith. If one is a muslem, he/she should pray five times a day and fast during Rammaddan. This can not be based on perceived benefit of such actions, for example loosing weight, as the prime benefit is to obey the Lord. Praying four times or fasting another months will never count. Whilst the way in which these rules are applied can change according to circumstances, the rules themselves are permanent.

It also fails to explain that Islam is the final message from Allaah (God) that sealed and upgraded all guidance to mankind. Islam recognises Jesus and Moses as prophets preceding the final prophet, all coming from the same God (Allaah) and are looked at equally by Muslims. Christians and Jews are considered people of the book, who are treated well even though they are yet to complete their journey to God (Allaah) by recognising his final prophet (Muhammad) and following his final message (the Koran).

The book is meant to be short, to fit a pocket, yet it is confusing, difficult to follow and does not achieve its aim.