The World from Islam

by George Negus

How great are the belief chasms between Muslims, Jews, and Christians? This book dispels the myths and explores the mutual ignorance, beliefs, differences, and philosophies concerning these religions, while explaining the entirely different way of life that is Islam.

Genres: Nonfiction, Religion, Islam, Australia, Travel

320 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2004

About the author

George Edward Negus was an Australian journalist, author, television and radio presenter specialising in international affairs. He was a pioneer of Australian broadcast journalism, first appearing on the ABC's This Day Tonight and later on 60 Minutes. Negus was known for making complex international and political issues accessible to a broad audience through his down-to-earth, colloquial presentation style. His very direct interviewing technique occasionally caused confrontation, famously with Margaret Thatcher, but also led to some interviewees giving more information than they had given in other interviews. Recognition of his unique skills led to him hosting a new ABC show, Foreign Correspondent, and Dateline on SBS. He often reported from the frontline of dangerous conflicts and described himself as an "anti-war correspondent" who wanted people to understand the reasons behind why wars were senseless. He was awarded a Walkley Award for Outstanding Contribution to Journalism. He presented 6.30 with George Negus on Network Ten. He remained a director of his own media consulting company, Negus Media International until his death in 2024.

Reviews

[Declan Carmody · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
Some pretty interesting things brought up about Islam that I had no idea about. Really enjoyed the interviews conducted throughout with various Muslim community figures. Definitely disagreed with the author on some of his stances on the palestine situation, but he still wrote about it pretty fairly for the most part, and tbf it was written 20 years ago.
Really interesting chapter was about the replacement of communism with Islam by the US to have an ideology to rally against, thought that part was well written.

[Bob Daniel · Rating 2 out of 5]

An interesting book and possibly enlightening for some without a basic knowledge of religions and politics in he Middle East despite being dated by events 20 years ago. I was extremely disappointed by the authors apparent lack of knowledge of the three religions he was comparing and I felt his questioning and conclusions were influenced by this. I expected better from a journalist of his reputation.

[Kramer Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent look at Islam and the opinions of some Arabic Muslims. Negus had a bit too much to say about the Arabic geography and architecture for my liking. The highlights of the book are the points where Negus is interacting with Muslims and asking them their take on Islam, Palestine and Israel, terrorism, the USA, etc. However, I found Negus to be extremely weak in these interviews, in that he asks softball questions and does not follow up answers with any serious probing or critique. Negus's writing was adequate, and overall the book was reasonably interesting.

[Michael Kerjman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Also information on not-so-tourist destinations and Arabian local hobbits and customs is significantly educative and mind-broadening, author's suggestions from juxtaposition of "occupied territories", self-inflicted Israeli security problems and peace-for-land notions had been factually dismissed in situ since this book publication at the dawn of the XXIst century.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't really enjoy the structure of this book. The contents could be thought provoking or informative for someone who has very little knowledge about Islam. Overall, I felt like the book went a lot of directions, but didn't fully reach a destination in any of them.

[Richard Bowen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hard work. Content was good but I found it repetitive and long-winded, meaning I drifted rather than focusing on the underlying messages.

[Alexandra Phillips · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read.

[Jim · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found George's writing style initially rather frustrating, but after a while the 'journal'/reportage-esque format started to make sense (or at least why/how he'd chosen to use it).

Once the discussion about ideas gets underway and exposition of Islam proper then the book becomes much more interesting and educational; tellingly, around this point in the proceedings GN stops banging on about 'who's side is God on/which God are we talking about' (although this is an idée fixe that he never completely loses and, like a dog, continues to worry at - frankly I found this attitude extremely annoying).

His interviews with Arab-Muslims (I found the focus on Arab-Muslims worthy of note, given that the highest population of Muslims is to be found in Indonesia) from a variety of backgrounds and Middle Eastern countries were very enlightening and informative - and would be especially, I imagine, for those general readers who may not have listened to (or encountered the writings of) any Muslims outside of tv news-grabs or tabloid headlines.

Without wanting to make any personal comments about the relative merits of any of the major religions discussed within the book, the 'take-out' message from the book to me, as with so many situations, is that we should all exercise far greater tolerance of, and basic respect towards, anything that we do not fully understand or appreciate without first seeking to become as informed as possible and most importantly, grounding that information in personal experience.

May your God go with you in Peace.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent look at the basics of Islam and various and diverse Muslim communities throughout the world. Negus poses many questions but leaves the reader to draw their own conclusions. He presents aspects of Muslim life such as family life, shopping and the celebrations for Eid ul Fitr which many people in the West were previously ignorant of. He records full interviews with a range of Muslims from Sheiks to the uber wealthy oil magnates to poor family men on ideas such as Muslim democracy, the position of women in Islam, the Israeli-Palestinian divide and the place of Islam in everyday life. Very readable but Negus like any parent is perhaps a little too happy to introduce his son into the mix of the book by telling the reader how curious he was about the different way of life of Muslims in the Middle East and the relative differences in wealth and security in the different Arab states. Not earthbreaking but still ultimately a positive step in providing readers more accessible material on Islam and Muslims.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fabulous book by George. George has a lot of serious journalistic experience in the Middle East and is a credible witness.

This book tries to show how Islam sees the rest of the world, in particular the west. He is trying to allow us to stand in the shoes of the average Muslim and see what they see. Trying to understand what we fear is the first step in tolerance and maturity. He rightly says that the language the west uses only muddies this understanding. Yes Muslims are fundamentalists - in that their religion is fundamental to their daily life and view of their future. The word fundamental is not interchangeable with terrorism or extremism.

[Sabina · Rating 4 out of 5]

The accomplished and well-know Australian journalist George Negus takes us on a journey through the Middle East - Palestine, Jordan, UAE, Oman.... Negus' book is written in a style of a journal, while interviews conducted in the typical Negus fashion encapsulate the authors discussions with Arab Muslims.

[Christel Keijzer · Rating 4 out of 5]

an interesting and down-to-earth account of George's travels through a range of countries in the Middle East and all the varied conversations he's had in various sectors of society about Islamic culture and religion from local perspectives

[Peter Langston · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although some of the references are dated - the book was published in 2003 - the conclusion Negus has reached is still compelling. This journal of his travels through Islamic states, both personal and professional, would be an eye opener for those who only adopt western media visions of Muslims.

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoy the musings of Negus, and he has a curiosity that lends itself well to the world around him.

[Shahiron Sahari]

One of the worst books I have ever read, by far. Appalling language and very poor grasp of the facts. Extremely immature writer who somehow became a star journalist.