Food for Thought

On this page I’m going to have a running list of all the books I’ve read lately on Islam and my thoughts on them. Please comment and feel free to recommend anything you think is important.

• The Qurán translated by Abdullah Yusuf Ali

This is the first version that I got from the library at school. It was noted by every one of my muslim friends that there are several innacuracies in this version. Nothing too terrible, and I was assured that I would be able to pick them out by myself, but I did abandon this version for one loaned to me by Aysha.

• The Qurán: A New Translation by M.A.S. Abdel Haleem

I’m currently working through this version, and so far so good. I’ll update more on it as I go. At this point, it is a bit of a tedious read… I don’t think any major religious text is exactly fireside reading.

• Elementary Teachings of Islam by Muhammad Abdul Aleem Siddiqui

This book is awesome! It’s the best beginners guide to Islam I’ve seen. It basically takes you through the articles and principals of the faith in question and answer format. There is also a handy section (with pictures!) on how to pray correctly.

• A Brief Illustrated Guide to Understanding Islam by I. A. Ibrahim

Anything illustrated gets extra points in my book, but this was certainly an interesting read! It takes specific passages from the Qurán and proves scientifically that the writings were both true and far far far too advanced in thought for their time to be anything but divine. I look foreward to actually comparing the passages to the whole section of the Qurán that they are taken from.

 

That’s all I’m going to add for now, but I have a bunch more to type out!

…and I’m back to add a few more…

 

• Towards Understanding Islam by Abul A’la Mawdudi

I’m still working my way though this one. It’s set up as a sort of a question and answer book; but relies heavily on the history of the Islamic movement. It then goes into the articles of faith, prayer and worship, and divine law. So handy!