No religion in the modern world is as feared and misunderstood as Islam. It haunts the popular imagination as an extreme faith that promotes terror...
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Apr 04, 2009
Renee
rated it: 
Honestly, why do I keep picking up Karen Armstrong's books?
It's not that she is a bad writer, just an exceptionally boring one. When I listen to 'Islam: A Short History' I feel like I'm being hit by a verbal machine gun fire of names, dates and places. Unfortunately few of these fact 'bullets' remain in my brain.
She starts off innocently enough, giving an account Muhammad's life and then ....'BANG, BANG BANG!' she hits you with a blitzkrieg of boring, impersonal facts.
About t More...
It's not that she is a bad writer, just an exceptionally boring one. When I listen to 'Islam: A Short History' I feel like I'm being hit by a verbal machine gun fire of names, dates and places. Unfortunately few of these fact 'bullets' remain in my brain.
She starts off innocently enough, giving an account Muhammad's life and then ....'BANG, BANG BANG!' she hits you with a blitzkrieg of boring, impersonal facts.
About t More...
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May 01, 2008
Kevin
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Armstrong's brief (circa 190 pages) history of Islam is necessary reading, but not particularly well written. Her account is based in the fact that there can be no separation of religious from political histories when it comes to Islam: for the Islamic notion of 'salvation' "does not consist in the redemption of an 'original sin' committed by Adam and the admittance to eternal life, but in the achievement of a society which puts into practice God's desires for the human race" (24 More...
Dec 15, 2007
Adam
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From Publishers Weekly
Readers seeking a quick but thoughtful introduction to Islam will want to peruse Armstrong's latest offering. In her hallmark stylish and accessible prose, the author of A History of God takes readers from the sixth-century days of the Prophet Muhammad to the present. Armstrong writes about the revelations Muhammad received, and explains that the Qur'an earned its name (which means recitation) because most of Muhammad's followers were illiterate and learned his teachi More...
Readers seeking a quick but thoughtful introduction to Islam will want to peruse Armstrong's latest offering. In her hallmark stylish and accessible prose, the author of A History of God takes readers from the sixth-century days of the Prophet Muhammad to the present. Armstrong writes about the revelations Muhammad received, and explains that the Qur'an earned its name (which means recitation) because most of Muhammad's followers were illiterate and learned his teachi More...
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Feb 12, 2009
Saquib11c
rated it: 
the book is written by an author who has complete grip on the subject. although she is not a muslim but she expressed herself in an absolute superb way and brought the correct perspective of islam. although in west the religion of islam is misunderstood as the religion of killings or it is being spread by sword etc but the history of islam tells us it is not so. the writer show up all the important events and depicts that no where in islam it is ever encouraged to kill other human beings if they
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Sep 23, 2011
Ilya
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Karen Armstrong is a former Roman Catholic nun who writes popular books about the history of religion. Here she tells the conventional story of Islam from the revelations of Muhammad till the present day: the rises and falls of empires, of dynasties, of religious schools. I do not know the relevant history well enough to criticize Armstrong's handling of facts, though I was surprised to read that the importance of Battle of Poitiers is often exaggerated by Westerners. How could it be unimportant
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Aug 16, 2011
Matt
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I found this to be a really appealing and succinct history of a topic that I feel like I should already know, but which I am almost totally ignorant of. It's a short history, and I'm sure there's a lot more I could learn, but I thought Armstrong did the best job I've read so far of explaining the Shia/ Sunni thing, and also in later sections laid out the different strains and approaches to Islam that I can sort of see a bit more clearly what the competing modern strains are all about.
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Nov 17, 2010
Jati
rated it:
Sebenarnya ini buku udah nangkring lama di rak, secara dulu belinya pas pameran buku and diskon gede-gedean. Tapi baru aja dibaca bener-bener. Ternyata ini buku bagus banget; ringkas, padat, dan jelas. Ditulis oleh seorang Islamolog yang mantan biarawati. Karen Armstrong memaparkan sejarah Islam dengan cukup obyektik dan terstruktur rapi. Bahasa yang mudah dicerna dan mengalir membuat pembaca sangat menikmati perjalanan agama yang dibawa Muhammad ini hingga akhirnya mendunia.
Selain pem More...
Selain pem More...
Jan 17, 2011
Salem
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This is a very important book. Required reading, regardless of the nature of your religious views, or whether they exist or not.
As a Muslim, I know most of the historical figures and events explored in this book, but with varying levels of familiarity and in a discontinuous manner. This book is excellent in formulating a relatively complete (albeit somewhat shallow) picture of Islamic history, stemming from the Rashidun Caliphate, to the Ummayyad, Abassid, and Ottoman medieval empire More...
As a Muslim, I know most of the historical figures and events explored in this book, but with varying levels of familiarity and in a discontinuous manner. This book is excellent in formulating a relatively complete (albeit somewhat shallow) picture of Islamic history, stemming from the Rashidun Caliphate, to the Ummayyad, Abassid, and Ottoman medieval empire More...
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Jun 24, 2011
Fiansyah
rated it:
Menulis tentang sejarah Islam yang telah terukir selama belasan abad jelas bukan pekerjaan mudah. Itulah yang dilakukan oleh Karen Armstrong dalam bukunya, Islam: A Short History. Tidak seperti kalangan Orientalis (sarjana Barat yang mengkaji tentang masalah Islam) pada umumnya, Karen bisa dibilang sedikit dari sarjana Barat yang menulis tentang Islam secara "objektif". Ya, dengan bahasa yang sederhana dan mudah dipahami, dalam tulisannya kali ini Karen memang terlihat empatik terhadap
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Sep 04, 2011
Melissa
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There's a lot that's useful about this book--particularly the final section that does a thorough job in discussing Islam during the twentieth century. I was really able to absorb how this religion that is so clearly based on peace and spirituality could develop and influence the Middle East. This is the strongest area, for me as a reader, and where Armstrong's knowledge about Christianity is useful.
The earlier sections of the book were somewhat harder to digest, if only because there More...
The earlier sections of the book were somewhat harder to digest, if only because there More...
Apr 20, 2010
Sirr
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OK I really did not like this book. First of all, the scholarship runs like FOX News with the little blurbs. It is clearly designed for an unintelligent audience with no clue about Islam. I was able to pick up some dates and clues about the generalisation of Islam, however on a whole there is much more to be learned from a single conversation with a born-raised Muslim than from this Western woman's book.
I've some points of contention, namely that she skips entirely over the schism at More...
I've some points of contention, namely that she skips entirely over the schism at More...
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Aug 08, 2011
Nura
rated it:
A balanced treatise on a sensitive subject especially given that it was written by a non-Muslim.
As with any organised religion out there, the problem is never the religion. It is always the interpreters and practitioners.
What I found interesting from Armstrong's book is how politics was never meant to be separated from the full practice of Islam. And yet, most of the turmoil and upheaval that has followed Islam's progress throughout the ages are precisely due to it. It More...
As with any organised religion out there, the problem is never the religion. It is always the interpreters and practitioners.
What I found interesting from Armstrong's book is how politics was never meant to be separated from the full practice of Islam. And yet, most of the turmoil and upheaval that has followed Islam's progress throughout the ages are precisely due to it. It More...
Sep 18, 2008
Dino
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A very good book that gives a nice perspective on the sociological and political dynamics of Islam.
Also this book was written by Karen Armstrong (a monotheist and former nun) before 2001. So it is not a part of the torrent of crappy books on the subject that we saw after sept 11.
Much appreciated.
Also this book was written by Karen Armstrong (a monotheist and former nun) before 2001. So it is not a part of the torrent of crappy books on the subject that we saw after sept 11.
Much appreciated.
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Jul 30, 2011
Ronald
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A book of the Modern Library Chronicles series attempting to provide a basic understanding of the Muslim religion. It begins with the prophet Muhammad and his significance to Arab culture in the seventh century. It ends with an overview of current world tensions and the part that Islam and its various sects play in them — at least up to the year 2000. While I gave up on trying to remember all the Arab names along the way, I at least feel I have a better understanding now of second-millennium dev
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Mar 12, 2011
SnowyAngel
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A Non-Muslim's view of Islam...
Considering that this book is written by a Non-Muslim author about Islam, I found this book very interesting. Karen Armstrong has summed up the history of Islam in about 170 pages, which is an achievement on its own; however, I did feel that in parts the book presented a very garbbled up mess of the facts.
However, one thing is for sure, this book is uniquely thought-provoking. The muslims need to be creative and think of a solut More...
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Jul 30, 2011
Debbie
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As usual a well written book by the author....condensing a mass of information down to a readable document. Since I don't know much about Islam I can only assume that she has written factually and knowledgeably. Her descriptions of fundamentalism, whether Muslim or Christian or Jewish, were very helpful to me. She says that fundamentalism is a reaction to modernism....modernism being that which diminished traditional and core values. When fundamentalism is the response/reaction the core valu
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Nov 21, 2010
Lisa
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In spite of my high regard for Karen Armstrong, I gave up 65% of the way through "Islam: A Short History", which reads about like this: "andthenthishappenedandthenthishappenedandthenthishappened." It's impossible to absorb, even if you are deeply interested in and have some familiarity with Islam. Name after name after name with minimal context. It's difficult to imagine a reader who would find this book useful--maybe a college student writing a paper on Islamic history?
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Jun 26, 2011
David
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I wanted to read the Oxford History of Islam, but couldn't get it to work on the eReader, so I started with this. I through a few chapters, and feel it really is that --too short for me. Just as an era is developed, it is right on to the next. I am going to ditch, and go back to the (recommended Oxford history, if I can convert) Stil, I have a good introduction to the Sunni/Shi'a split.But as we breeze along, I am not stuck on it. It is better than wikipedia, but sometimes I would appreciate mo
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Dec 07, 2009
Kristi
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This is a fantastic history of islam. The author is a former nun and has written a lot of books about religious history. It was a bit dry at points, but moves through and highlights the important parts of islamic history brilliantly. Most muslims were opposed to 9/11 which was a wicked abuse of religous power. It is not part of their religion to attack countries that allow them to practice their religion peacefully or kill innocent people. The history of this religion was of tolerance for ot
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Oct 19, 2010
Jeremy
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The "short history" is a deeply problematic genre of book, especially when it is the history of something as complex and rich as Islam. To write a short history of Islam is to skirt reductionism. At best, these book provide a sweeping context which can then support further reading, and do a minimum of damage in terms of creating false generalizations that will need to be undone later. However, Karen Armstrong is a good historian, and she is mostly up to the task. This is a real history
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Nov 18, 2011
Will
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Reading Karen Armstrong’s book for a class on the history of Islam gave me a topical view of an intricate history. Armstrong is known for her many works on the histories of the world’s faiths so it is no surprise that she would try her hand at this one. I read the book in two large chunks, because of the assigned reading. This took away from reading the book as I assume many folks who made this book a New York Times best seller did. We read from the first half of Islam’s history, up until it’s c
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Jun 24, 2009
Tony
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Haven't finished, but it is a quite revealing book. Interesting how having a religious figure that transformed the world being firmly in the historical era.
the key factor to me is that Mohammed brought forth a system of belief that was a distinct improvement to the social and cultural era that it was born in. the idea of this being some sort of revelation from God is rather implausible.
However since I am also reading "lost Christianity" it is maybe less crazy than what has More...
the key factor to me is that Mohammed brought forth a system of belief that was a distinct improvement to the social and cultural era that it was born in. the idea of this being some sort of revelation from God is rather implausible.
However since I am also reading "lost Christianity" it is maybe less crazy than what has More...
Aug 17, 2009
Aaron
rated it:
The middle third of the book was pretty dry (it took me several stop-and-start-up-again weeks to get through it), but the beginning and the end were very insightful.
Islam is not inherently violent, and the Quran actually prohibits many of the things the Taliban, Al Qaeda, and other muslim extremists do. At the end of the book, the author effectively makes the point that "fundamentalism" is not unique to Islam, but is found in all of the worlds' major religions. In fact, i More...
Islam is not inherently violent, and the Quran actually prohibits many of the things the Taliban, Al Qaeda, and other muslim extremists do. At the end of the book, the author effectively makes the point that "fundamentalism" is not unique to Islam, but is found in all of the worlds' major religions. In fact, i More...
Jul 07, 2008
Terence
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When I watch our pundits pontificate on affairs in the Middle East, I usually wind up pounding my forehead on the table: Things can't possibly be as simple as all that, and this "short history" of Islam proves that.
As usual, Armstrong packs a lot of information into a small package. This is a high altitude flight over 1,500 years of Islamic history so the reader shouldn't expect to become an expert in sufism (for example) but it drives home several points:
1. Isl More...
As usual, Armstrong packs a lot of information into a small package. This is a high altitude flight over 1,500 years of Islamic history so the reader shouldn't expect to become an expert in sufism (for example) but it drives home several points:
1. Isl More...
Oct 25, 2007
Readers seeking a quick but thoughtful introduction to Islam will want to peruse Armstrong's latest offering. In her hallmark stylish and accessible prose, the author of A History of God takes readers from the sixth-century days of the Prophet Muhammad to the present. Armstrong writes about the revelations Muhammad received, and explains that the Qur'an earned its name (which means recitation) because most of Muhammad's followers were illiterate and learned his teachings not from reading them bu
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Oct 21, 2007
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/1352235.html#cutid2[return][return] I was expecting a largely political history of the Islamic world, but in fact Armstrong gives a fascinating account of the development of Islamic religious thought in its political context. My own political contacts have tended to the more secularised and secularist end of the spectrum (my professional interests in the Balkans, Turkey/Cyprus, Polisario, Somaliland, my relatives from Bangladesh - only one of those areas being Arabi
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May 25, 2010
Christian
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A fast and furious run through the history of Islam. Unfortunately, too much area to cover in this book. I liked her book on the life of Muhammad better. Mostly because she could concentrate on covering one person's life. This book was still a good primer for the Westerner who does not know much about Islam. After reading it one can then find a focus for more reading on Islamic history and Middle East history in general. I know I'm going to do further reading on the development of Sufism.
Jul 17, 2011
Siddarth
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the book details d development of islam through the ages and explains why islamic countries find it difficult to seperate politics from religion. it also explains the different sects in islam, and describes the different dynasties that embraced islam. though the book is written as a narration of dates and events, i dont see how summarized narration would have helped otherwise. the book is a jewel in my opinion and i wouldnt have wanted the author to write it in any other style.
Jul 09, 2011
Bradley
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A little dry in some areas, but well written overall. It's kind of disappointing that the author has to spell out some things that should be common sense, like the fact that the Middle East contributed to Europe's Renaissance, that the Middle East was at one time THE world power, etc. etc. I suppose that's unsurprising though, considering the way the region and religion is portrayed in modern media. After reading this I have a better, though shallow, understanding of the history of the region
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Apr 13, 2011
Karla
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We read this book for a study during Lent. It was very well written and first published in 2000. An epilogue was added after September 11. Armstrong is an acclaimed religious studies expert and presents the history of Islam in an understandable way and gives insight into the politics of not only the Middle East, butIndia, Central Asia,etc. I learned so much and have a much better understanding of the Islam and the Quoran. I highly recommend this book.
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