What Everyone Needs to Know about Islam by John L. Esposito

What Everyone Needs to Know about Islam Reviews

• 
  Ron

  Just re read this book. The author was one of my professors in college. He was an excellent teacher. Book may be a bit basic for some, but it is very informative. Its fairly objective in its perspective.
• 
  Elisabeth

  As an Anthropologist I did not enjoy this book. I am used to reading books which discuss a culture/religion as a whole and not merely select issues. That being said, I do believe this would be a good book for much of the Western world to read given all of the stereotypes regarding Muslims and Arabs that we hold on to so dearly. This book was very concise in its descriptions of some of these issues. Some of them seemed biased, but for the most part the discussions within were excellent.
• 
  Amanda Miller

  Very informative. I truly enjoyed this book. I recommend it for anyone who wants to know the basics of Islam.
• 
  John

  This book is a defense, not really an intro text. Despite what the title might make you think, the goal of the book seems to be to highlight the shared values Islam has with "the West" and also defend Islam from current misconceptions. All good, and all things that need to be faced and understood with toleration and humility.
  
  Unfortunately, it shortly became clear that the author was going through every issue people had questions about and finding the most modern answer to be found in the Islamic tradition and leaving all the not-so-modern parts out. He also employed the time-worn strategy of saying, "Well Judaism and Christianity did it too...times a billion!" To be fair, the author is certainly not required to drag up the worst of the worst, but what he leaves out is often very crucial to understanding Islam as a whole.
  
  For instance, he talks of the Sunni/Shia split as a disagreement about how to choose successors to Muhammad. The Sunnis wanted a successor based on merit and the Shia wanted a blood relative to succeed. That IS an accurate statement, but it doesn't mention the assassinations and outright war that took place to make the split happen. Not only is it important to add more historical context but it also seems a little insensitive to Shiites to say that they simply thought blood relatives should succeed. They thought their man, Ali, was the most meritorious, as well. So much for that issue.
  
  Another issue where he "chose carefully" is polygamy. The Quran basically limits Muslims to four wives (though Muhammad ended up having, like, nine in his life, though this is not mentioned). What the author fails to add is that they could have any number of concubines on the side (though, to complicate this even more, the bride could have as part of a marriage contract that the husband not take more concubines [it's this kind of complexity and nuance that's required if we really want the truth]). You could say he doesn't have to mention them since they aren't married, but the real reason he leaves it out is because he's trying to make Islam palatable, and mentioning concubines, non-Muslim slaves taken from other regions, isn't going to help his case. In fact, he quotes the verse from the Quran that is immediately before the line on concubines, and then stops. I wouldn't have known this, except that I'm working through the Quran myself, but when I saw that he left this out, I honestly opened my mouth in surprise.
  
  I'm going to stop here at two topics, but the same problems persisted throughout. To be fair (again) to Mr. Esposito, if his task is to show that Islam CAN be modernized or be acceptable to Westerners, then he only needs to find available paths to get there, and those paths don't have to follow what Islam was or is, and they don't have to agree with each other, either. However - and this is the last time I'll say this - without knowing the historical intent and context that is left out (and so much has to be in a small book anyway), you will not get an accurate portrait. Or, perhaps I should say you will get a portrait instead of the real thing. An impressionistic, flowery Monet of a portrait.
  
  There were definitely issues I learned about in this book that I thought were interesting, like Islam's take on the environment, or Islamic banking. However, any new information I found was overshadowed by the author's clear goal. I would title this book, "PART of What Everyone Needs to Know about Islam."
  
  
• 
  Mohamed Balhaj

  The book is written to non muslims. It explains the common questions that westerners usually have about Islam. The books is written by non-muslim, yet the author defends Islam. Besides he has much knowledge about Islam.
  Most of muslims are already familiar with most of the materials. Yet, in the way the book answers the question, the reader gets an idea what westerners know and how can you compare islam and christianity
• 
  Garrett

  Well written and informative but just scrapes the surface. If you really want to find out about Islam you need to study everything intently. Start here but look deeper and further. It is important to get multiple perspectives on religion and determine what's fact or fiction. Very good book. Anybody could enjoy it and learn important things from it.
• 
  Jennifer

  Useful, clear guide to the basics about Islam. Definitely an apologia and a deliberate counterbalance to the Islamophobic content out there (I’m not sure an “objective” basic guide to Islam—or indeed, any religion—is possible in today’s world). The legal/theological difference in approach to religion and daily life were very helpful for framing the discussion.
• 
  old account (rl)

  Looking for a quick guide to Islam? I think this is your book.
  
  It was an easy, quick read to fly through, and provided an in-depth look at all religious areas of Islam, making all the information relatively brief and to the point. I loved the way it was set-out with FAQs as headers so you could just pick it up at the one question you wanted the answer to and then could put it back down without having to bother with the rest of the book.
  
  The way that the author detailed the difference between cultural customs and religious (Islamic) customs was fantastic. It really helped to learn the difference between what Muslims (religious) individuals believed and what was believed as a society or community in Muslim countries.
  
  It handled controversial subjects well and talked about the historical background of customs and beliefs in the Islamic religion and culture. E.g. why Islamic aren't fond of hand-shakes (touching non-familial people was seen as unclean and inappropriate if the individual was unmarried) and why they are stereotyped as hating animals, especially dogs (dogs were often dirty and flea-ridden and touching them made a Muslin unclean for prayer; letting a dirty dog into your house made the house unclean too).
  
  I did find that the author was a little too biased - the author is a Muslim himself - at times - saying things like "we believe in ___" or "Allah told us ____" etc. rather than avoiding the personal pronouns and separating himself from the topic. He also compared almost every topic to parts of Christianity, Judaism, Sikhism or Catholicism which I found rather unnecessary.
  
  Overall, a good introduction piece to Islam. If you need something to give you a quick and easy background to the Muslim faith than I would recommend picking this up.
• 
  Ahmed Halawa

  Sugar coated view of lslam.
  
  It's quite deciptive at many places in the book, giving half facts that don't represent the whole scenario. I am lucky to have had known things prior to reading the book that the writer didn't feel it's important to cover up.
  
  Moreover, The writer didn't provide any polls, data or research that would provide an idea to what Muslims do actually believe in, now, at least. Instead, the writer chose to use words like, few, most, some. Not good. Also if you wanna read a primer on Islam I don't recommend this one, not comprehensive enough, but not zero stars bad.
• 
  Ietrio

  I love the linearity of simple minds. Esposito not only knows ALL about Islam, but his mind is so advanced he can compile what Everyone would need to know. Sadly it is a rather uniform propaganda text: this is it, now die for your leaders.
• 
  Said

  Bite-sized information about a variety of subjects
  
  3.5 stars
  
  Nice introduction but as others noted, it's not comprehensive and deep enough for certain subjects/questions that the book covers. But to be fair, it covers a lot of interesting questions that come up in the daily lives of people.
• 
  clary

  Not rlly that informative. Same 5 facts told over a hundred pages
• 
  Katherine

  Genuinely really helpful and common sense, organized as a series of frequently asked questions with concise 1-2 paragraph answers provided for each. Good resource.
• 
  Quynh

  Before reading this book, I had never given Islam (or any religion to be honest) much thought & carried w/ me the images and preconceptions of Muslims as they are portrayed by news stories. So.. to regretfully say, I was foolishly ignorant and carried with me the heaviest and uninformed ideas of severely oppressed women, a violent culture, and tyrannical governments. I didn't understand much about countries w/ a large Muslim population and high clerical influence on governments; I would see images of veiled women on the news, feel it was backwards, and be more frustrated than understanding of these countries' cultural choices. So w/ my pre-ignorance emphasized and confessed, I can now say.... I am wholly grateful I am now less ignorant of this religion and the Muslim culture. When reading this book, I found that Islam is an extremely popular religion (who knew?) & that the religion is actually quite beautiful. The book itself is very very informative, with details on significant religious figures and items, terminology, values, history, and most importantly, how all these items translate to the Muslim culture we have today. The book is presented in a Q&A format, w/ even a glossary & index in the back. The book is factual, but I did pick up a bitttt of bias in the writing, as the author really tried to present the religion in a much more positive light than how it's portrayed by the media. However, this was okay with me, as his portrayal of the religion is probably more accurate of the Muslim society as a whole than the extreme profiles we see on the news. What I garnered most from this book is a new respect for the strong sense of community and selflessness among Muslims and an understanding that their religion, as many religions can be, is skewed to fit extremist goals and Western profiles. The image in America of Muslims - and the one I had in my head - is completely one-dimensional, and to look at this religion only from its negatives is a complete disservice to both Muslims and non-Muslims, as it has WONDERFUL and respectful traditions. I am very very glad I read this book, if not simply to be more informed!
• 
  Jeff T.

  Thoughtful, enlightening, and inclusive, Esposito's reference book is written in that very style. It is intended to be an encyclopedic style knowledge resource where one can go with questions with regard to Islam and glean rational and objective responses. Esposito states in the foreword that he did not intend the work to be read cover to cover, however, that is what I very well did. In reading it I discovered that he obviously suspected many would read it in such a way as it is designed to present Islam and Muslims objectively and crescendos by the end apologetically. I appreciated his perspective and feel much more informed now. I do wish he had spent more time developing his responses to questions that raise issues of violence. Although he writes often and quite damning of violence among some who twist Islam to match their own radical and violent ideologies, he uses every opportunity to point the finger at Christianity and show how it has been violent in the past, too. If I wanted to read about Christianity, I would have picked up a book about Christianity. Furthermore, when he concludes with his thoughts of Islamophobia in the West he gives little consideration for why many in the West feel this great fear and suspicion of Islam, but instead cites how racist, bigoted, and unfounded their fears are. I may agree with him, but someone as reasonable as he purports to be should be able to analyze Western fears and make a determination based on media reports of violent acts committed by some Muslims in the West and show that people have developed this fear from these experiences. From that point he should have then laid their fears to rest and showed how most American Muslims live peaceably as contributing citizens. Instead he completely disregards their emotions and calls names.
  
  Despite this. I learned a ton about Islam and Muslims. I feel like with that knowledge many of my own questions and even fears have been answered or faded away in the light of understanding.
• 
  Russell Sanders

  If you have a “need to know,” John L. Esposito, one of America’s leading scholars on Islam, has compiled a book that, while not exhaustive, will supply a neophyte enough knowledge to feel informed or enough to propel the reader to other sources. That book is What Everyone Needs to Know About Islam. Divided into topic after topic, most entries are no more than a page long. Esposito covers topics such as “What do Muslims believe?” and “What is a mosque?” and “How is Islam similar to Judaism and Christianity?” and so many more topics that lead us to understanding of this religion that many know so little of. The reader will also learn the answers to “What does Islam say about homosexuality?,” “What does Islam say about abortion?,” and “What does Islam say about birth control?” So this is not just a dry treatise on Islamic history and beliefs, but it goes into topics that let us delve into the personalities of those who practice Islam. Esposito’s title is a bit over the top because this is a complex religion that a mere 250 pages can’t begin to totally explain. But for the person who wants some insight, some understanding, about Islam, this is a very good handbook.
• 
  Mary Anne

  I originally read/listened to Esposito's
  Great World Religions: Islam and found it to be really awesome. One of my colleagues had this book around and I decided to check it out. This book is set up such that you can go directly to the section you're interested in instead of reading it cover to cover, but I enjoyed reading it cover to cover. The book has these sections: general information; faith and practice; Islam and other religions; customs and culture; violence and terrorism; society, politics, and economy; and Muslims in the west. And all of the sections contain questions to answer. Overall it's a pretty great resource, and I'd kind of like to own something like this for reference.
• 
  Muna Zaen

  The questions are what the author regards as most frequently asked, and each questions are written in independent manner that readers can start reading the book by choosing any chapter from anywhere in the book. The answers are written in a non-judgmental way, means it is what it is, and not showing any personal preference whatsoever. The book has an extensive references, the words are simple and easy to digest. It is NOT a complete guidance towards Islam, but merely and sufficiently a starting point for those who wish to be introduced to the religion.
  
  Read:
  http://2010rantings.blogspot.com/2011...
• 
  Wendy

  This is basically a comprehensive defense of Islam. It offers information on the minutest details about Islamic history and customs, which is very much appreciated by this reader, but Esposito never really answers the question of why so few of the "peace-loving," "mainstream" Muslims that he describes in his book actually speak out against the "extremists" who are apparently hijacking their religion. I will give it three stars for the very complete background information, but no more since it still leaves me with questions.
• 
  Jeremy

  Overcontextualized
  
  I found this to be an informative introduction to the topic. The question-and-answer format resulted in a flowing organization that worked well for many short readings and will work well for quick consultation in the future. My impression, however, was that Islam is really just about the same as Judaism and Christianity (which have some major differences themselves). The distinctiveness or otherness of the religion is downplayed in favor of similarities—especially similarities with Catholic Christianity.
• 
  Sandra Strange

  Good start to understanding Islam
  
  This book gives a lot of information about Islam, organized in question-answer form. And that's part of the problem with the book. It seems a little disorganized, with topics hard to find. It's also a bit burdened by its essential purposes--inform, but present Islam in a very positive light. I would like to have had more hard information on Islamic history and culture, more specifics about the contents of the Quran and fewer generalized sections designed to add luster to the reader's opinion of Muslims.
• 
  J

  Organized in Q&A format with Esposito's answers to commonly asked questions. Some questions are about Islam but the answers Esposito gives are about what different things Muslims do, say, believe and so on. In these cases, not much critical analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of differing stances is given.
• 
  Matthew Ence

  Intelligent and objective review of the Islamic faith. Esposito has always been a moderate and reasoned voice in the often hysterical debate about what Islam is and is not. Unlike his other books, this book is written in a question and answer format which allows the reader to search for a particular topic of interest or read cover to cover.
• 
  Jagati Bagchi

  The book provides an insight into the complexities in Islam in a very non - judgemental way. What is important that we get to view our predispositions on some of the most talked about issues from a different aspect.Also it helped me in my work as gender consultant to address some of the tricky questions on marriage divorce etc with more convictions.
• 
  Shannon

  Very concise and informative. Esposito is not necessarily presenting an outline of the religion of Islam, but rather addressing common or controversial questions about the faith that have risen, especially after 9/11. He gives insight to cultural context on topics such as terrorism and women's rights. Very scholarly overview of a 1400-year-old religion.