Notwithstanding the recent avalanche of popular writing on Islam, most Americans still know very little about this misunderstood faith and its 1.2 billion adherents worldwide. In American popular culture today, terrorism and Islam have become synonymous. In this engaging, evenhanded, and highly readable book, one of America's foremost experts on contemporary Islam seeks to correct popular misconceptions about this faith. A professor of religion and international affairs and director of the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University, Esposito (editor, The Oxford Illustrated History of Islam) does an admirable job of explaining sociopolitical and cultural developments in the Muslim world in a fashion that is easily accessible to nonspecialist readers. Issues such as the rise of militant Islam and its key personalities, including Sayyid Qutb and Osama bin Laden, are fully explained. This is essential reading for every concerned citizen and all those who wish to gain a deeper understanding of contemporary Islam and its internal struggles. Highly recommended for public and academic libraries

尽管最近关于伊斯兰教的流行文章如雨后春笋般涌现，但大多数美国人对这个被误解的信仰及其在全世界的12亿信徒仍然知之甚少。在今天的美国流行文化中，恐怖主义和伊斯兰教已经成为同义词。在这本引人入胜、不偏不倚、可读性强的书中，美国最重要的当代伊斯兰教专家之一试图纠正人们对这一信仰的误解。埃斯波西托是乔治敦大学宗教和国际事务教授兼穆斯林-基督教理解中心主任，他（编辑《牛津大学伊斯兰教插图史》）以非专业读者容易理解的方式解释了穆斯林世界的社会政治和文化发展，这一点令人钦佩。诸如激进的伊斯兰教及其关键人物（包括赛义德-库特布和奥萨马-本-拉登）的崛起等问题都得到了充分的解释。对于每一个关心此事的公民和所有希望更深入地了解当代伊斯兰教及其内部斗争的人来说，这是一本必不可少的读物。强烈推荐给公共和学术图书馆