"...feels like a revelation...a raw nerve ending for the West - shocking, raw, but mercifully, joyously,
still alive."
-- Andrew Sullivan, New York Times Book Review, 1/25/2004
"Irshad Manji is a fresh, new and intriguing voice of Islamic reform. This wonderfully written book will surprise
you, educate you, even entertain you."
-- Alan Dershowitz, author of The Case for Israel
"[Manji's] ideas have already set off a searching debate."
-- Clifford Krauss, The New York Times
"Tightly reasoned and packed with knockout punches."
-- Pat Donnelly, Montreal Gazette
"Manji is blazingly articulate."
-- Margaret Wente, The Globe and Mail (Canada)
"The Trouble with Islam is beyond controversial. It may ignite a firestorm of protest...her easy conversational
style, addressed to 'my fellow Muslims,' makes it accessible to a wide range of readers."
-- Leslie Scrivener, The Toronto Star
St. Martin's Press, LLC Web Site, July, 2005
Summary
"I have to be honest with you. Islam is on very thin ice with me.... Through our screaming self-pity and
our conspicuous silences, we Muslims are conspiring against ourselves. We're in crisis and we're dragging the rest
of the world with us. If ever there was a moment for an Islamic reformation, it's now. For the love of God, what
are we doing about it?"
In this open letter, Irshad Manji unearths the troubling cornerstones of mainstream Islam today: tribal insularity,
deep-seated anti-Semitism, and an uncritical acceptance of the Koran as the final, and therefore superior, manifesto
of God's will. But her message is ultimately positive. She offers a practical vision of how Islam can undergo a
reformation that empowers women, promotes respect for religious minorities, and fosters a competition of ideas.
Her vision revives "ijtihad," Islam's lost tradition of independent thinking. In that spirit, Irshad
has a refreshing challenge for both Muslims and non-Muslims: Don't silence yourselves. Ask questions---out loud.
The Trouble with Islam Today is a clarion call for a fatwa-free future.