American Islam

Reza Aslan

Paul M. Barrett's well wrought and engaging new book, American Islam, seeks to change perceptions by providing an intimate group portrait of Muslim Americans as they struggle to combat the threats, prejudices and stereotypes that have dogged them since 9/11. Barrett, a longtime Wall Street Journal reporter who's now at BusinessWeek, uses his journalistic skills to insinuate himself into the lives of his subjects -- no easy task in a time of heightened suspicions. The book traces the lives of seven American Muslims, from the wily Dearborn, Mich., publisher and political activist Osama Siblani to the energetic journalist and Islamic feminist Asra Nomani, whose crusade to tear down the wall of separation between men and women in her Morgantown, W.Va., mosque made her a media superstar in the United States and, to her surprise, a scourge in her own community.
— The Washington Post

Publishers Weekly

Near the end of this fascinating and carefully researched portrait of Islam in contemporary America, a California mosque experiences a surprisingly heated internal debate about whether to host a fireworks celebration on the Fourth of July. Somehow, the "canopies of red, white, and blue that for a moment illuminated the minaret and dome" of the mosque crystallize many of the tensions that Barrett describes, particularly how so many individuals struggle to be faithful Muslims and patriotic citizens during troubled times. One great contribution of the book is the diverse portrait it offers of Islam in America today, but as Barrett shows, such ideological and racial diversity haven't been easy: Pakistani immigrants are sometimes at odds with African-American converts and (mostly white) Sufi spiritualists; feminists draw angry fire as they strive for greater equality; and self-proclaimed progressive Muslims feel at odds as American mosques become increasingly conservative and strident. Barrett is an engaging writer who puts a human face on all of these issues. The book is remarkably evenhanded, but Barrett can also be critical at times, whether analyzing the shortcomings of the Patriot Act or pointing to the inconsistency of a self-starting New York imam who works for justice but also praises Muslim extremists. Balanced and insightful, this grassroots journalistic account mines the complexity and depth of American Islam. (Jan.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

Since 9/11, an abundance of books on Islam and Islamic terrorism has been published. Many books specifically addressing Islam in America have also appeared. What sets apart this new work from Barrett (The Good Black: A True Story of Race in America) is that he provides portraits of individual Muslims living in the United States. By focusing on the personal experiences of these individuals, Barrett is able to offer a distinctive view of Islam in America. He has selected interesting and diverse people for examination: a black imam, an activist, a webmaster, a publisher, two mystics, a scholar, and a feminist. The feminist works for change in her local mosque, which results in some tensions and conflict in her community. The webmaster is a graduate student who also hosts an Arabic-language Islamic web site containing radical messages. In a work such as this, there may be no real need for statistical data. Still, an opening chapter providing an overview of American Muslims would have helped. Recommended for academic and public libraries. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 9/15/06.]-John Jaeger, Dallas Baptist Univ. Lib. Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

"In America, Muslims do not think and act alike any more than Christians do." So writes Business Week editor Barrett (The Good Black, 1999) in this timely survey of America's six-million followers of Islam. Barrett highlights the diversity of Islam, noting that there are many differences among native-born and immigrant practitioners and even among long-established communities. Some Muslims are committed to liberalizing the faith, such as a young West Virginia woman who insists that she be allowed to pray in the same space as men. Another recounts his transformation from onetime member of the violent Muslim Brotherhood to ecumenicalist; this young man even ventures that he wishes his wife had not taken up wearing the hijab, but adds, "It's no big deal." Others are committed to a more conservative version of Islam, and others even to radical, virulently anti-Semitic brands of Wahhabism, with all their talk of Jews' being "brothers of monkeys and pigs" deserving of slaughter. Interestingly, Barrett notes, Muslim Americans tend to be wealthier and better educated than non-Muslims (59 percent, for instance, have college degrees, as compared to 27 percent of all American adults). They tend to observe the same sharp divisions between Shia and Sunni as can be found in the rest of the world. And, until late 2001, they tended to vote Republican-in heavily Democratic Michigan, by margins of more than three to one, even as George Bush's team actively courted the Muslim vote. Following the attacks of 9/11, however, Muslims of every stripe and sensibility reported feeling singled out; Shiite supporters of the war in Iraq increasingly sided with their Sunni opponents, and it was not uncommon to hearsupport for-or at least a refusal to condemn-Osama bin Laden and his operatives. Necessary reading for police advocates of profiling, and highly useful for anyone wishing a greater understanding of Muslim compatriots. Agent: Stuart Krichevsky/Stuart Krichevsky Literary Agency