Rizwi S. Faizer Ph.D. McGill
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© 1998 Rizwi Faizer.

An Introduction to Islam:

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  1. Armstrong, Karen. Islam: A Short History. New York: The Modern Library, 2000.
  2. Andrae, T. J. E. Muhammad, the Man and His Faith. Translated by Theophil Menzel, New York: Ayer Company Publishers Incorporated, 1971.
  3. Bacharach, Jere L. A Middle East Studies Handbook. The University of Washington Press, 1984.
  4. Bloom, Jonathan and Blair, Sheila. Islam: A Thousand Years of Faith and Power.New York: TV Books, 2000.A newer edition will soon be available
  5. Boullata, Issa J. Trends and Issues in Contemporary Arab Thought. Albany: SUNY Press, 1990. Even modernists seek legitimacy by going back to the origins. This book is important because it explains that connection while presenting the vision expressed by the men and women of today.
  6. Brockelman, Carl. A History of the Islamic Peoples. London: Routledge and Keegan Paul Ltd., 1964.
  7. Cahen, Claude. L'Islam des origines au début de l'empire ottoman. Paris: Bordas, 1970.
  8. Denny, Frederick M. "Islam and the Muslim Community." Religious Traditions of the World. Ed. H. Byron Earhart. San Francisco: Harper, 1984.
  9. Esposito, John L. Islam: The Straight Path. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998. An excellent text book for the undergraduate.
  10. Ettinghausen, Richard and Grabar, Oleg. The Art and Architecture of Islam: 650-1250. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1987. Every student of Islam should know this work. History is not merely political intrigue and battles.
  11. Frishman, Martin and Hasan-Uddin Khan, eds. The Mosque: History, Architectural Development and Regional Diversity. London: Thames and Hudson Ltd, 1994.
  12. Glubb, Sir J. B. A Short History of the Arab Peoples. New York: Dorset Press, 1969. A short cut to a complicated political history.
  13. Geertz, Clifford. Islam Observed. New Haven: 1968. Shows how differently Islam is practiced in Indonesia and Morocco.
  14. Grabar, Oleg. Studies in Medieval Islamic Art. London: Variorum Reprints, 1976.
  15. Grunebaum, G. E. von Classical Islam. London: 1970.
  16. Hallaq, W. B. and D. P. Little. Eds. Islamic Studies Presented to Charles J. Adams. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1991.
  17. Hazard, H. W. Atlas of Islamic History. Princeton: 1954.
  18. Hodgson, Marshall G. S. The Venture of Islam. 3 Vols. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1958. A difficult read- but worth the effort!
  19. Humphreys, R. Stephen. Islamic History: A Framework for Inquiry. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1991. This is a book that I would recommend to every graduate student. It helped me get through my comprehensive exams and formulate my dissertation proposal. I have placed the review by Fred M. Donner on my book review page.
  20. Kirkpatrick, James. Anthology of Islamic Literature. New York: Mentor Books, 1964.
  21. Lapidus, Ira M. A History of Islamic Societies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988. Covers the development of Islam in the Middle East, Africa, AND Asia from its birth to the 1980s. An amazing amount of information!
  22. Lewis, Bernard. The Middle East. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1995. Well written; a pleasure to read.
  23. Lings, Martin. Muhammad: His Life based on the Earliest Sources New York: Inner Traditions Internatinal, 1987.
  24. Mernissi, Fatima. The Veil and the Male Elite. Translated by Mary Jo Lakeland. Massachusettes: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company Inc., 1987. An important and extremely well written feminist perspective.
  25. Moreh, Shmuel. Live Theatre and Dramatic Literature in the Medieval Arab World. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1992.
  26. Najib Ullah. Islamic Literature. New York: Washington Square Press, 1963.
  27. Peters, F. E. Children of Abraham. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1984.
  28. ________. Jerusalem. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1985. Peters is a well loved writer- historian on the Near East, and in Jerusalem we see him at his best.
  29. ________. A Reader on Classical Islam. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1991. A choice collection of citations from original sources.
  30. _______. Muhammad and the Origins of Islam. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1994.
  31. Rahman, Fazlur. Islam. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1979.
  32. Rippin, Andrew. Muslims: Religious Beliefs and Practices. 2nd Ed., The Formative Period. New York: Routledge, 2001.
  33. Robinson, Francis, ed. Cambridge Illustrated History of the Islamic World. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996.
  34. Ruthven, Malise. Islam in the World. London: Penguin Books, 1984.
  35. _______. Islam: a Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997.
  36. Schimmel, Annemarie. Islam: An Introduction. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1992.
  37. ________. Mystical Dimensions of Islam. North Carolina: The University of North Carolina Press, 1975. A very fine introduction to Islamic Mysticism by an authority who loves the subject.
  38. Stierlin, Henri. Islam: Vol. 1. Early Architecture from Baghdad to Cordoba. Koln: Taschen, 1996.
  39. Stillman, Norman. The Jews of Arab Lands: A History and Source Book. Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication Society, 1979. A good introduction to a very important subject.
  40. Tayob, Abdelkader. Islam: A Short Introduction. Oxford: Oneworld Press, 1999.
  41. Waines, David. An Introduction to Islam. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995.
  42. Watt, W. Montgomery. Muhammad Prophet and Statesman. London: Oxford University Press, 1961.
  43. Welch, Alford T. "Muhammad: Life of the Prophet." Vol. 3, The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World. Edited by John L. Esposito. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995.

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