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YANCEY:
Why don't I start with Karen Armstrong's book Islam, which appeared on The New York Times bestseller list for many weeks after September 11. I imagine more Americans are learning about Islam from this book than from any other single source.

Armstrong has lived a life of diverse spirituality, one that well qualifies her as a guide to other religions. She spent seven years as a nun—frustrating years, as it turns out, since upon reflection she realized that "nothing had actually happened to me from a source beyond myself." While her belief in God slipped away, her interest in religion did not. Recognizing the human being as an incurably spiritual animal, she studied both Buddhism and Islam and then began teaching Christianity at a Jewish school in London. Her writing primarily centers on the great monotheistic religions, as seen in her books A History of God, The Battle for God, and Jerusalem.

Armstrong has written a biography of Muhammad (Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet), and more recently Islam: A Short History, part of the Modern Library Chronicles series. Although I know of no better 200-page introduction to Islam, the book does not measure up to Armstrong's other writings. It sparkles in the early pages, as she keeps the spotlight on the prophet Muhammad himself, and the last chapter offers important perspectives on modern Islam. The middle chapters, however, wane into a catalogue of conflicts and theological controversies that no doubt require a longer treatment for real comprehension. (I must say, though, that reading Armstrong's history of Islam gave me sympathy for those outside the Christian faith who attempt to wade through the thicket of our theological controversies and the issues that divide Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox Christians to this day.)

In her writings, Armstrong bends over backwards to portray Muhammad and his religion in the best possible light. She skips over some of the more violent scenes, and does not dwell on the role of women in Islamic society. Indeed, Muhammad comes across as a sort of open-minded Victorian gentleman who might be found in the parlor wearing a lounging jacket and discussing the meaning of life—after helping with the dishes, of course.

Nevertheless, Armstrong performs an important service by giving a more balanced picture of Islam than is usually found in the Western press. A good historian, she gives fascinating insights into the development of one of the world's great religions, noting especially its early interaction with Judaism and Christianity. (For example, Muslims copied from Greek Christians the practice of veiling their women, and likewise adopted the Christians' posture of praying in a prostrate position.) As she points out, Muhammad himself never asked Jews or Christians to accept Islam because he believed they had their own valid revelations of God.

Another post-9/11 bestseller is Bernard Lewis's What Went Wrong? Western Impact and Middle Eastern Response. Lewis, who celebrated his 86th birthday earlier this year, is perhaps the foremost living Western scholar of Islam and the Middle East, the author of more than 30 books. He's a deeply sympathetic guide, yet his love for his subject doesn't blind him. This new book was completed before September 11, but it offers a concise, authoritative account of the historical context of the attacks.

"What went wrong?" could be the title of a book looking at recent events from the perspective of the United States, and no doubt many such books are being written right now. But Lewis's book takes us inside the Islamic world, where the resonance of the question is quite different. It requires us to set aside our familiar narratives of world history, where Islam appears on the margins.

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