No God but God
Price:
$24.99 (04)Description
Western media has consistently focused on the extremes of Islam, overlooking a quiet yet pervasive moderate religious movement that is currently transforming the nation of Egypt. Drawing on hundreds of interviews, No God But God opens up previously inaccessible segments of Egyptian society to illustrate the deep penetration of "Popular Islamic" influence. Geneive Abdo provides a firsthand account of this movement, allowing its leaders, street preachers, scholars, doctors, lawyers, men and women of all social classes to speak for themselves. Challenging Western stereotypes, she finds that this growing number of Islamists do not seek the violent overthrow of the government or a return to a medieval age. Instead, they believe their religious values are compatible with the demands of the modern world. They are working within and beyond the secular framework of the nation to gradually create a new society based on Islamic principles.Both fascinating and unsettling, Abdo's findings identify a grassroots model for transforming a secular nation-state to an Islamic social order that will likely inspire other Muslim nations.
Reviews
"As Abdo effectively points out in this important work, regardless of significant Western cultural influence and a relatively secular and firm Egyptian government, the grassroots Islamic revival taking shape in Egypt is indeed a serious and thriving force."--Middle East Insight
"Geneive Abdo chronicles Egypt's contemporary moderate Islamist movement with clarity and insight....(She) has a firm grasp of the history of which she writes and an obvious empathy for her subjects. She is a fine journalist and a sensitive analyst."--The Washington Post Book World
"Abdo's analysis is fresh, nuanced and grounded in extensive interviewing and observation in that country."--Christian Century
About the Author(s)
Geneive Abdo , the former correspondent in Tehran for the Guardian and The Economist , was a Nieman fellow at Harvard University and a John Simon Guggenheim fellow in 2001-2002. As a correspondent based in Cairo for The Dallas Morning News , she reported from numerous Islamic countries, from the Middle East to North Africa and Central Asia. She has also been a staff writer for Newsday and the Baltimore Evening Sun .
