Islam – A Concise Introduction, by Neal Robinson. Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 1999. 197 pages.
This British author gives a positive spin on the history of Muhammad, the Quran, and Islam, and a short summary of what is required of a Muslim. It concludes with a description of Islamic denominations and sects, helpful appendices on the Arabic language and names and the Islamic calendar and festivals, a short bibliography and an index. Interestingly, he defines “moderate” Muslims as those “who seek to create an Islamic state [everywhere] by democratic means” whereas the fundamentalists seek to do the same thing by force.
