Islam, Paperback

Fazlur Rahman's Islam is aptly titled, in that this slim volume constitutes an incisive and surprisingly comprehensive history and analysis of Islam--its history, its conflicts, its legacy--and its prospects. From Mohammed to the late twentieth century, Rahman traces the development of Islam as a religion and, more importantly, as an intellectual tradition, offering both an easily understood introduction to the faith and an impassioned argument for its future direction.

Fazlur Rahman (1919-1988) was the Harold H. Swift Distinguished Service Professor of Islamic Thought at the University of Chicago. His many books include Islam and Modernity: Transformation of an Intellectual Tradition and Prophecy in Islam: Philosophy and Orthodoxy, both published by the University of Chicago Press.