Customer Reviews

Why I Am a Muslim

5 star:		(62)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(22)

 

 

This book is worse than the sentimental pamphlets on Islam one sees on the streets of London and New York. Most information in it is a narrow cherry-pick. This is such a confused account of Islam that it does major damage on several fronts. Specifically:

1. Asma is wrong to state that freedom of speech is a core value of both Islam and America. In fact freedom of speech occupies a totally different context in Islam than it does in America. American culture values individual freedom even at the expense of collective culture. On the other hand, Islam places the highest value on stability of the community, even at the expense of individual freedom. The Qur'an has defined strict limits to behavior - no drinking, no pork, no sex outside marriage, no homosexuality, no blasphemy, prohibition to convert out of Islam, modesty in manners for both men and women, Muslim women not allowed to marry non-Muslim men, women's legal testimony in financial matters weighted half that of men, etc. Asma seems oblivious to these basic facts about Islam.

2. Asma commits a major blunder by claiming throughout the book that "Muhammad founded Islam". This is the incorrect and irritating language of 19th century European Orientalists who Asma seems to have blindly copied. No Muslim will ever say that Prophet Muhammad (Upon Him Be Peace) "founded" Islam. If anyone "founded" Islam, it is God. Muhammad is only a messenger.

3. Asma goes on to write that according to Armstrong, "If Muhammad had known about other religions, he would have celebrated these religions too". Is Asma implying that Prophet Muhammad (Upon Him Be Peace) created the laws of Islam himself or that God is unaware of non-semitic religions?

4. Asma claims to know why Satan did not bow down to Adam. She asks "Was Satan right not to bow down to Adam?" She then responds, "Of course, humans are not perfect". Such flaky and dangerous logic makes travesty of the rich Muslim theological tradition of 1400 years. In her hubris, Asma does not even end such statements by the characteristic Muslim expression "walla hu alam" (which means "God knows best") and is always appended to personal opinions by Muslims where answers to difficult questions cannot be established with certitude. She also claims to know what God meant in the Qur'an when God said to the angels "And I know what you know not". Her presumptuous and nonsensical answer is that "we, as humans, are sometimes lucky enough to reach the highest of highs".

5. The child-like writing leaves much to be desired. An example of disjointed sentences littered throughout the book: "Islam is a simple religion. It is not as complicated as everyone makes it seem. It can be complicated if you want it to be. "Therefore stand firm in the straight path as thou art commanded," the Qur'an says (11:112). When Monir called me, I answered the phone. In Islam, God is just a call away, too."

6. Asma's claim that "Islam has had little problem with science" is only the position of modern apologists who want to see Islam validated by science. I suggest that Asma and the serious readers get a copy of Nasr's "Religion and the Order of Nature" to get to know the hierarchical principles under which Islamic Science is cultivated. It stands in contrast to the profane principles of modern science.

7. Asma displays arrogance by stating her views on polygamy thus: "In the end, the view that a reasonable person would take away is that polygamy is no longer allowed." I want to know what if a situation gets created in Palestine or Iraq or Kashmir or Afghanistan or Chechnya in future where large numbers of men are killed fighting on-going wars. Will Asma's feminist streak then allow Muslim men the responsibility of multiple wives to take care of homeless women and orphans or not?

8. Asma says that American Law and Islamic Law are similar. This again shows how little she knows. You're better off reading El Fadl or Rahman's analysis on the key differences between American and Islamic Law.

9. Asma insists that she respects freedom of speech, which she calls core values of both Islam and America. But then she smugly suggests that those who criticize America should leave America (in her words "if you don't need America, then we don't need you"). What sort of logic is this? Why won't she let others express themselves freely? What sort of tolerance is Asma displaying by demanding the expulsion of those who want to make America better by criticizing its darker aspects? (e.g. Middle East policy, anti-Muslim attitudes and Iraq policy immediately come to mind, not to mention US government's support of tin-pot dictators and petty tyrants like Saudi Royal family, Hosni Mubarak etc.).

12. Asma cannot see that America is a secular society, which is radically different from Islam's God-centered vision of society. Islam recognizes tolerance but does not endorse secularism. The élan of the Qur'an is that you should "never ever forget God" but always keep God present in your consciousness and fear the Day of Judgement. All secular cultures by default marginalize religion so cannot be compatible with an Islamic society. Serious readers should read Rene Guenon's "The Reign of Quantity" to see how both secularism and democracy are the profane indicators of a modern human society racing towards dissolution.

My advice to readers: save your precious time and money by skipping this book. It was not for nothing that Prophet Muhammad (Upon Him Be Peace) warned against learning about Islam from those who are not trained and qualified for the task.

If Asma reads this review, she might ask me to leave America as well. But I'm not going anywhere, Asma! I too am an American Muslim and America is my home so I'm staying put!

Wow there are some seriously vicious people in here. Ah to be objective...the claim of many but the accomplishment of the few!
I just finished reading this book, and it was overall an enjoyable experience. This is not an in-depth view or history of Islam. It is what the title says... Why the author, the person, herself, is Muslim!
For someone wanting more or searching deep insight, it could be better researched, it could be a bit deeper. Some of it went slow and i had to fast-forward through those parts.
But this book is a personal conversation between the author and the average person unfamiliar with Islam, and comes from the author's heart and mind.
Despite the subjective nature of the title and book, Hasan is objective and logically explains her views along with her personal experiences.
It was an enjoyable read, taught me a couple of things, made me understand her viewpoint, and had genuinely touching and moving and deep moments in it.
It's worth the good parts and touching moments and insight.

I do hope that Asma's heart was in the right place when she wrote this book. Islam teaches us to educate others about our religion, but not at the expense of accuracy. I feel this book gives an inaccurate portrayel of Islam. She supposedly quotes different prophets by writing in her book, " they probably said this ...." That is completely inappropriate, who are we to guess what these religious leaders said hundreds of years ago? After reading this book, I seriously question her writing ability and desire to be accurate and sincere in her desire to educate others about Islam. I feel she became an "author" to make a name for herself and to be known as someone with great Islamic knowledge. Please if you want to read a smartly written book on Islam there are many to choose from, just don't let this book be on your list. You could start with The Complete Idiots Guide to Islam.

I, for one, am relieved that I checked this book out from the library. I wasted my precious time reading it, but at least saved my $$$$

As a non Muslim, I am interested to know what Islam is really about without the politics and extremist rhetoric.
This book educated me on how Islam is really practiced by Muslims around the world.
The Muslims I know are like this author, not the ones on the news, so it is great to see this message out there.
I would highly recommend this book!

This book gave me a clear and honest glimpse into Islam and the Muslim world. I work with a Muslim boss and this book answered questions for me that I could not find answers to. It gave me a clear and academic explanations of the Muslim mindset. The book has very good viewpoints about Islam, that are helpful to me as a Christian to understand Islam and Muslims. This book is the best book I have found about Muslims and who they are. I recommend this book to everyone who wants to find out about Islam in-depth and about Muslims. I applaud the writer for such good work.

As an English woman (Christian) who has lived in Saudi Arabia for many years, I found Asma Gull Hasan's presentation of her Islamic faith lucid and enlightening. It is written in a lively, conversational style, and she includes many anecdotes from her childhood and schooldays to illustrate the descriptions of Islamic belief and philosophy. As I have studied Islam intensively in both informal and academic settings, this book was a little too rudimentary for me - Ms. Hasan presents a 'short and simple' version of Islam for the benefit of the Western reader who is new to the subject.

Theologically, I disagree with Ms. Hasan on several counts, and there are many fellow Muslim women who have argued against her interpretations of the Qur'an - the journalist and author Saraji Umm Zaid being one of the most prominent. Complicated theological quibbles apart, the best thing about Ms Hasan's writing is that it successfully illustrates that there are hundreds of different views and perspectives within Islam. A lot of Western readers approach Islam and the Qur'an just like the Muslim fundamentalists do: they assume that the Qur'an definitely says a certain thing that has got to be taken in a certain way, and that all Muslims must accept that thing or else they are hypocrites. This just isn't the case - Islam has its different denominations, just as Christianity does, and there are lots of possible ways of interpreting an old classical Arabic text. "Why I Am a Muslim" is one woman's personal exploration of those possibilities, not a definitive textbook on all things Islamic. It should be accepted as such. Don't condemn it just because it doesn't contain what you expected to find, as your expectations probably aren't that well-informed to start with.

As for the reviewer who declares that he was upset that this book contains nothing on the cartoon controversy, I suggest that he take a look at the publication date. The cartoon controversy erupted in 2006. Ms. Hasan's book is several years old. What did he expect her to do - predict the future and write a response to it?

Dear Asma,

Thank you for writing a great book about Islam. I just completed reading it yesterday and I just thought I should post my review to congraluate and support you on writing such a great book. I feel I can relate to your thoughts about Islam. I am also a muslim. Reading your book makes me feel that I am not alone as a muslim woman and that I have similar views that you mentioned in the book in regards to the Sept 11th attacks. I also agree with you in regards to wearing a hajib, I also dont wear it, but I belive that doesnt make me a bad muslim, I do most of what is required from me by islam as a woman, I am not perfect but I try my best, which you mentioned in the book that god doesnt expects us to be perfect that we can make mistakes. Another good point you mentioned in the book was regarding a passage in the quran mentioning that we should hate jews and christains. I also used to get confused about this passge but you clearly explained well what it really means and that made me feel good about it.

Your book is very simple and clear that I dont think only non-muslims should read it but also all muslims should read it. Its always good to refresh our memory and understanding of Islam and to always seek more knowledge about our religion. Everyday we learn something new, and I belive I learned a lot from your book.

Overally, I really enjoyed your book and it made me more proud to be a muslim. Thank you and take care.

I have just finished reading Asma Gull Hasan's book, Why I Am a Muslim, An American Odyssey. It is beautifully and simply written in the American vernacular, easily understood by all. Asma Gull Hasan is an American Muslim as I am. Asma presents a wonderful understanding of Islam through vignettes of her life, by quoting the Quran, by teaching about the Prophet Muhammad, by clarifying misconceptions and misinformation about Islam, by explaining how cultural biases got mixed up with Islam, and by showing what the true Islam is, the one, which our Prophet, taught and lived.

I bought this book after seeing Asma speak in LA. I learned so much from her talking. She is smart, funny, very pretty and enjoyable to listen to, and the book is GREAT!
There were mostly Muslims in attendance at the event, and they all responded enthusiastically. It was clearly a positive
reinforcement for the community. Refreshing to see a relaxed,
self-assured Muslim woman.
I look forward to more books by Asma.

I thought the book "Why I am a Muslim" is a better read for Non-Muslims than Muslims. Muslims already know within themselves why they have chosen to follow Islam and don't need to read her opinions, since they are probably similar in many aspects. The book seemed to drag for me at times.

The book is more important for non-Muslims to read since it may show them that there are strong woman in our culture. Perhaps it will make them realize that not all women of Islam are oppressed and brutalized like they show in the media too often. We also have outspoken and educated women, like Hasan, in our culture as well. By the way, they are not rare.

The book also, maybe inadvertently, gives a few lessons about Islam to non-Muslims, which could lead them to do further unbiased research about Islam. By doing there own study of the religon, with credible sources, they themselves can learn what Islam is truly about.

The only major disagreement I had with Hasan's viewpoints was the fact she seems to think that the wearing of hijabs (headcoverings) is a sign of oppression against women. Many Muslim women I know wear it and it is not by force, but by choice. I have seen in many cases wear the Mom does not wear it but the daughter does. What does that tell you?

As for the men who came up to her after one of her speeches and asked her why doesn't she wear it, I would tell them to back off. What she is saying in this book or in her speeches is not diminished by what she is or isn't wearing on her head. It's her choice and it is not your place to ask. That was the best question you could come up with after she was done speaking? C'mon.

Overall a quick decent read. Four stars if you are non-Muslim. It will be more interesting for you.