The Islamist (A Book Review)
May 22nd, 2009 by Admin
Whether folks want to call it the War on Terrorism or Overseas Contingency Operations, the fact is that we are war with an ideology that wants to kill us. For decades, Islamic extremists have plotted and carried out attacks against the West. They used suicide bombers, car bombs, kidnappings, and planes to carry out their agenda of bringing about the new caliphate.
In a compelling and brave portrayal of life on the inside of Islamic extremism, Ed Hussain puts his life on the line to tell the story of how he turned to the dark side of a peaceful religion in "The Islamist: Why I Became an Islamic Fundamentalist, What I Saw Inside, and Why I Left."
Ed didn't grow up with extremist or fundamentalist ideas about his religion. He came from a very respected family within the Muslim community that believed in the peaceful teachings of the Koran and worked hard to spread the message of Islam. That message is one of peace, brotherly kindness, community involvement, and respect for other religions.
However, at just the tender age of 16, Ed was introduced to a side of Islam that would eventually lead to his falling away from traditional teachings to one of violence and radicalism.
"The Islamist" provides powerful insight into the minds of Muslim youth and how the movement twists world events and Koranic teachings into justified terror and extremism. This book crushes the myth that all followers of Islam are violent extremists. Ed candidly explorers his own dissappointment at allowing himself to be tricked into shunning his father's and grandfather's teachings.
Throughout the book, Ed provides specific indications of where not only he went wrong, but where his country, Great Britain, went wrong with extemist Islam. Our politicians could stand to treat this book as a how-to manual for preventing extremist views was evolving in our country. He doesn't hold anything back and provides detailed examples of where he – and his country – went wrong in dealing with his religion.
You'll mourn along with the author as you read this book from front to back and witness his spiritual death and rebirth. You'll wake up to the fact that here in America we're going down the same road in fostering extremism in this country. But, you'll be thankful that you educated yourself by picking up this book and learning the true nature of Islam – from traditional Islam to Fundamental Islam. You'll come away recognizing as well that not all Muslims are violent murderers. Quite the contrary; you'll find that the ones who are perverting the religion are just a vocal – and dangerous – minority.
I highly recommend this book for anyone that believes in freedom and liberty and the risk posed to it by "The Islamist". Stay tuned to this blog and www.YouServed.com as we're working to get Ed Hussain on our show to talk about his book more in depth and about Islam in general.
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Tags: ed hussain, the islamist
Posted in Book Reports