Few books
In the past two weeks I finished reading two books on Islam namely The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid and Stranger to history by Aatish Taseer.
Content wise i liked Taseer's book. "A son's journey through Islamic lands" is how the book is subtitled. By the way, Aatish Taseer is the son of Indian journalist Tavleen Singh and Salman Taseer who is the governor of Punjab in Pakistan. Starting from Istanbul, to Mecca, to Syria and Iran, and then ending in Pakistan at Lahore where his father lived. At many points, the book was a revelation for me as far as Islam is concerned. For example, the earliest Qiblah, or direction of prayer, was Jerusalem, and not the Ka'bah. Had the Jews favourably received the new prophet, [...] Jerusalem and not Makkah would have been the sacred city, and the ancient Rock and not the Ka'bah would have been the object of supertitious reverence. A very important question that Taseer asks is Why did being Muslim mean that your allegiances went out to other Muslims before the citizens of your own country?
Hamid's I liked for its style of narration. The way Changez sitting in a Lahore cafe narrates to an American how he once loved America which gave him a nice education, a well paying job and a beautiful girl. The book was shortlisted for Booker in 2007.
Currently reading The rise and fall of Athens: Nine Greek Lives by Plutarch.
Content wise i liked Taseer's book. "A son's journey through Islamic lands" is how the book is subtitled. By the way, Aatish Taseer is the son of Indian journalist Tavleen Singh and Salman Taseer who is the governor of Punjab in Pakistan. Starting from Istanbul, to Mecca, to Syria and Iran, and then ending in Pakistan at Lahore where his father lived. At many points, the book was a revelation for me as far as Islam is concerned. For example, the earliest Qiblah, or direction of prayer, was Jerusalem, and not the Ka'bah. Had the Jews favourably received the new prophet, [...] Jerusalem and not Makkah would have been the sacred city, and the ancient Rock and not the Ka'bah would have been the object of supertitious reverence. A very important question that Taseer asks is Why did being Muslim mean that your allegiances went out to other Muslims before the citizens of your own country?
Hamid's I liked for its style of narration. The way Changez sitting in a Lahore cafe narrates to an American how he once loved America which gave him a nice education, a well paying job and a beautiful girl. The book was shortlisted for Booker in 2007.
Currently reading The rise and fall of Athens: Nine Greek Lives by Plutarch.
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