Rating: 
Summary: Smart and efficient; a detailed introduction to Islam
Review: Don't be put off by the self-deprecating series title: This is one smart book, written in a conversational tone like talking to an interesting guest at a backyard barbecue. The au-thor is a US-born convert who has done some serious homework without going pedantic along the way. A solidly interior understanding of the faith of a billion people is a com-plicated thing, and Emerick and Alpha know that, so to help you along, they've created one of the most efficiently packaged books in the "Islam 101" genre. Not only is it all here-faith, history, cultures and lifestyles; squirmy issues like sectarianism, colonial-ism, the "inner-struggle" meaning of jihad, heaven-hell-and-judgement-but also to help you navigate it, there are two tables of contents, a short version and a long one. Topical infographics with titles like "Just the Facts" and "Ask the Imam" pop up as in-tellectual snack food, and at the end of each chapter there is a box "The Least You Need to Know" that offers bulleted Cliff-Notes-style one-liners. Who'd pass up a book like this? Only a complete idiot. DD
Rating: 
Summary: Look elsewhere
Review: I am a Catholic, who feels that Islam does unfairly get a bad rap. It is no more oppressive to women than Christianity and is a lot less oppressive than Judaism or Hinduism. Orthodox Jews in their prayers actually thank God that they are not women. Claims from Christians that Islam is a violent religion are hypocritical considering that it was Christians who violently colonized most of the world (claiming that they were doing it to save the savage pagans) and Christians who were responsible for all the major wars throughout the 21st century. Percentage wise South America has the largest number of terrrorist attacks every year. Criminal punishments in the Old Testament are much more barbaric than those of Islam, yet I have never heard anyone call Jews to account for this. I have read reviews of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Understanding Judaism and The Complete Idiot's Guide to Understanding Hinduism, yet I don't see the kind of ignorant attacks on these faiths that I read from some reviewers of this book. Yet many of the same kinds of allegations made against Islam can be made about other faiths including my own. However, while I can defend Islam from these hypocritical reviewers I cannot defend this book. For example, the defense of polygamy is insane. The authors say it is better for a man to take multiple wives than commit adultery. Considering that the world has approximately equal numbers of men and women the authors don't seem to realise that these...will create a shortage of women, which will deny many other men the ability to marry and raise families. They also ignore the importance of having a full-time father and husband in the home. The authors mention how Muslim invaders did not massacre the populations they invaded and were tolerant rulers unlike many others. He compares this to the brutality of the Christian Crusaders. The problem is he ignores the fact that the Muslims, like their Jewish and Christian counterparts, had no right to invade and occupy the lands of other peoples. Regarding the equal treatment of women I would agree that Islam's teachings on women were very progressive 1400 years ago (divorce rights, property rights, right to education and work, right to choose their own spouse, making inheritance a requirement for daughters, teaching that it is a sin to love sons more than daughters, etc.). However, Islam did not give women equal rights. Allowing a man to divorce his wife without getting permission from the courts while requiring permission for women is not equal treatment. Teaching that the man should be head of the family is not equal treatment and it assumes that women are either intellectually or morally inferior, or both to men (of course Christianity and Judaism are also guilty of teaching this). These are examples of how the authors don't want to look critically at anything. There are too many excuses and not enough substance. Instead read What Everyone Needs to Know About Islam by John L. Esposito, Wahhabism: A Critical Essay by Hamid Algar and Qur'an and Woman: Rereading the Sacred Text from a Woman's Perspective by Amina Wadud.
Rating:
Summary: Nice overview
Review: Excellent overview, nice context. Good basis for further studies
Rating: 
Summary: good but contains some errors
Review: As a practicing Muslim with limited knowledge of Islamic sciences I noticed some glaring errors in this book, for example in the story of Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) it wrongly states that Abraham was a polytheist and then became a Prophet. According to traditional Islamic scholars this is incorrect and there is at least one explicit verse in the Qur'an that states 'Ibrahim was NEVER amongst the polytheists', and the way the verses where Ibrahim appears to worship the moon, stars and sun are written is in such a way that it is apparant that he is trying to prove such things are disbelief by asking rhetorical questions. Only a few modern scholars ignorant of the explicit verses stating Ibrahim and other Prophets never dabbled in polytheism make such claims. Throughout the book Yahya Emerick seems to be getting his information from modern fringe salafi/ikhwaani scholars who are not representive of the majority in Islam. Many of the 'reformers' he mentioned and praised were founders of the salafi movement and many people believe these men caused a lot of damage to Islam. I personally do not think Mr Emerick is qualified to say many of the things he does, I think he should have co-authored the book with a recognised mainstream scholar. There are also many other things, and then some of the information about shias is very incorrect, I am not shia but I found the ignorance about the shia side of Islam offensive. I personally could not give this book to a non muslim because of the errors and minority views it contains; which is a shame as otherwise its a very good informative book.
Rating:
Summary: Easy to Read & Understand
Review: It's almost impossible to condense an entire religion into just one book, but Yahiya Emerick does it. The book is therefore a broad overview of many aspects of Islam, giving the reader a nice context. This book is ideal for the average person with little or a poor understanding of Islam. The book does a good job in breaking down at some of the typical misconceptions and stereotypes regarding Islam. Excellent work.
Rating:
Summary: Don't believe the negative critics
Review: Essentially, if you look at those who have given a negative rating to this book, for the most part they are just plain wrong. First of all, the book deals with the religion not politics or how misguided people have used it. It is a basic analysis of what the majority of Muslims SHOULD be doing and believing, rather than what actually happens in various places. So talking about terrorism and political structures is irrelevant. In any case the factors that contribute to those political situations is more related to history, economics, and global politics than religion. Very few wealthy people become suicide bombers!! Also, one reviewer went on a diatribe about Palestinians wanting to kill all Jews, this guy obviously doesn't bother to disguise his bias. Unfortunately many people hold his views, and think that Israel is God's nation, and that they can't do any wrong.
As for so-called illogical statements. Islam is entirely logical, unlike most other religions. There are parts where an average person, or perhaps a "complete idiot" may be confused, but get into it a little further with other books, and you will understand. Inevitably there is an assumption or a premise that there is a God, and a few supplementary premises, but after that the logic is clear. Without those premises, no religion is logical!! There is always some faith involved.
Does this book seem BIASED??? Well, many people who have claimed that it is obviously are going in with preconceived notions about Islam, which are highly negative. Even though Islam is growing very fast, the difference in attitudes between converts and other people is very different. What I mean is that the many people who would never consider converting have a very wrong conception of what Islam is all about. This comes from extremists, and how this extremist image has been used in popular culture. Afterall, you don't see any Muslim characters, at least no recurring ones, on any TV shows!!!
So why is the picture so rosey???? BECAUSE ISLAM is a great religion!! That is why there are so many Muslims. If it had this seedy underbelly that many people accuse it of, or if it was entirely illogical, or promoted hatred and oppression of women, than there wouldn't be very many Muslims!! Unless you believe that Arabs, South Asians, and the other mostly Muslim ethnic groups are somehow mentally inferior!!!
Some smaller points, one critic has countered the point that Islam doesn't preach conversion by force by siting the Taliban!!!! Well, first of all, I doubt the Taliban got any real converts, but the TALIBAN IS NOT ISLAM!!!! It sprouted out of an obscure school in Baluchistan, and took advantage of a political vacuum. It was supported by Pakistan only because it was the first Afghani government in forever to not argue about borders and have a pro-India bias!! So entirely political, as you can see.
So if you just want an introduction to Islam, not a deep philosophical analysis, than read this book. You know it is good, because of all the nutty critics who put it down with so much passion!!
See for yourself!!
Rating:
Summary: It is the reviewer whose logic is flawed
Review: Giving inanimate objects and animals a momentary power to choose does not imply they always had that power. Anyway, the author could have more accurately translated the word, not as free choice, but as "trust" (though his translation is common). The trust being to have responsibility for their actions. Yes, Muhammad made a treaty with a Christian tribe, but that was after 15 or so years of having only the briefest of contacts with anyone other than Arab idolaters. Before people reviewing this book attempt to use their own half-baked logic to throw a bad light on what it is trying to tell us about this much unknown religion, one must examine one's own logic and ask first how would a Muslim deal with that issue.
Rating:
Summary: Unintentionally worthwhile
Review: Without intending to, the author ... presents one example after another of the flawed logic of Muhammad and the Qur'an. Beasts and inanimate objects are given the choice of having free choice - something they could not do without already having free choice. Angels, who the Qur'an says are incapable of free choice, challenge Allah's decision to create Adam. Muhammad, whom we are told repeatedly had only two very brief contacts with Christians - and thus could not have taken their beliefs and distorted them - made a treaty with a nearby Christian community and, we learn on page 209, engaged frequently in interfaith dialogue "with Jews, Christians, and idolaters." Yes, the author does everything possible to proselytize and put the best face on things, but because he is devoted to [a religion], he does not attempt to hide the many defects. I highly recommend this book to any thinking person.
Rating: 
Summary: Aptly named
Review: I was surprised at how biased this is. From reading it you would think that all the evil in the world is in Europe and the United States, and that the Muslim people and countries are saintly. This is almost purely a propagandistic tract. Again and again we read of how oppressive and colonial is the West and how Islam is misunderstood. (Yet it is the fastest growing religion in the world.) This growth is accomplished "through the willing conversion of many of the inhabitants" from the conquest of lands (p. 10). Emerick contends also on page 10 that "The Qu'ran forbids forcing someone to convert to the faith." Right. Tell that to those who lived under the Taliban or anybody living in Muslim territory who might prefer another faith. Particularly misleading is this from Emerick on page 8 about Muslim lands: Where once you had a patchwork of weak dictatorships, monarchies, and sham democracies...now you have legitimate countries, each with its own vision and aspirations. Wow. Iraqi people certainly have their own vision. If they are part of the Republican Army they can distribute poison gas to the Kurds. The people in Saudi Arabia, if they are of the ruling families, can drive BMWs and create slush funds for Osama bin Ladin. In Iran one might aspire to whatever the ayatollahs allow. In Palestine it is possible to offer up your children for suicide missions and receive twenty-five thousand dollars from Saddam Hussein. If you think that the Jews have a right to exist, you might find that the PLO will persuade you otherwise. And speaking of Jews, here from page 191 is a summation: "Jews never had anything to fear from the rise of Islamic civilization." Emerick follows this stunner with a casual mention that Christians in Europe persecuted Jews. As for Muslim persecution of Jews he writes on page 192, In recent times "political conditions have cast a pall over Muslim-Jewish relations." A pall? Okay, how about women in Muslim countries? "The real story of women in Islam is one of progressive liberation and elevation of status." This is what he writes, I kid you not, from page 249. In short I think this book is aptly named "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Understanding Islam."
Rating:
Summary: Not all muslims think alike.
Review: The tragedy of 9/11 made it urgent non-muslims differentiate many different sects in Islam. The book should have been called "Understanding Sunni Islam" as it is properly mentioned in page 335. In contrast to page 335 no Muslim Caliph ever been ELECTED. The book does not mention how many muslims participated in the selection of the first Caliph. The 2nd Caliph was appointed by the first Caliph and the 3rd Caliph by 6 people. Not single election was held for any Caliph of Bani Ummaieh, Bani Abbas, or Othuman periods. Shiah does not consider birthright as the source of legitacy of Caliphs rather according to both Sunni and Shia books Muhammad PUH told Muslims to follow 12 Caliphs of his progeny. Rightfully the book mentions Fiver, Seveners, and Twelver Shiahs but should have also mentioned that 99% of Shiahs are Twelver Imams. In contrast to page 337 all muslims believe in coming of Mahdi not as Messiah rather along with Messiah and in contrast to page 337 Shiah does not believe Mahdi was taken to another realm of existance. In contrast to page 337 Shiah does not extend the infalliblity to other than the 12 Imams.
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