No god but God

The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam

By: Reza Aslan

Narrated by: Shishir Kurup

Length: 12 hrs and 37 mins

Publisher's summary

Though it is the fastest growing religion in the world, Islam remains shrouded by ignorance and fear. What is the essence of this ancient faith? Is it a religion of peace or war? How does Allah differ from the God of Jews and Christians? Can an Islamic state be founded on democratic values such as pluralism and human rights? A writer and scholar of comparative religions, Reza Aslan has earned international acclaim for the passion and clarity he has brought to these questions. In No god but God, challenging the "clash of civilizations" mentality that has distorted our view of Islam, Aslan explains this critical faith in all its complexity, beauty, and compassion.

Contrary to popular perception in the West, Islam is a religion firmly rooted in the prophetic traditions of the Jewish and Christian scriptures. Aslan begins with a vivid account of the social and religious milieu in which the Prophet Muhammad lived. The revelations that Muhammad received in Mecca and Medina, which were recorded in the Quran, became the foundation for a radically more egalitarian community, the likes of which had never been seen before.

According to Reza Aslan, we are now living in the era of "the Islamic Reformation". No god but God is a persuasive and elegantly written account of the roots of this reformation and the future of Islamic faith.

©2006 Reza Aslan (P)2009 Random House

excellent!

I am currently reading the book by Dr Aslan. Hearing it was a wonderful learning experience as well!

Great book, poor narrator.

While the book is great. The narrator does a very poor job with the pronunciation of basic Arabic words. Words such as “sharia” which are typically pronounced in the same way one might if it were an English spelling according to the standard English rules of pronunciation are given a forced exotic pronunciation. The same goes for the names of many major historical persons, religious terms, and even modern Middle Eastern cities are grossly mispronounced. To those who have even a reasonable awareness of current events, they will notice the gross mispronouncing of cities and Middle-East-related words.

Great book, well researched.

A good wealth of information that very few fully encompass, not even most Muslims themselves.

Curious About Islam? This Book is A Must Read.

Where does No god but God rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Excellent book. One of the most informative books I've listened to.

Any additional comments?

I was looking for a book that would help me understand the origins of Islam and what the Koran really says, and I couldn't have asked for a better book. Reza Aslan lays out the history of Muhammad, his inspirations to write the Koran and what happened after he died when the Muslim faith was splintered and twisted in so many ways. Not unlike what happened to Christianity. A rational, intelligent history from a religious scholar. Yes, Aslan is a Muslim, but seems to have a deep understanding and respect for all of the major religions.

Must Read History of Islam Religion

As a Christian, American academic, I found this book extremely enlightening. There are definitely parallels between the rise and evolution of Christianity, Israel and Islam.

I hope this books helps eventually heal the right between the sons of Abraham and paves the way for pluralistic democratic Muslim states.

Islam in the Arab world, but that's it

Any additional comments?

I started this book wanting to understand what Islam is about and what the global community of Muslims is like, beyond the tragedies and aggression that make the news. Sadly, most of my questions were left unanswered.

Aslan admits that Arabs make up only 20% of Muslims today, but this book never discusses Islam in Southeast Asia (where 62% of Muslims live) or anywhere else. It's all about the Middle East.

I love hearing Reza Aslan's thoughts on religion in general, so I was also disappointed that this book is about 90% straight history with very little commentary to help trace its relevance to modern-day Islam. (Contrast this with Zealot, in which he presented strong ideas and worked to support them.)

I might listen to the last few chapters again, to make sure I didn't miss anything major. I have to say that this book has taught me things I didn't know about Islam—I only wish it had gone further, with less detail about the religion's early years.

The narrator was excellent: very clear and easy to listen to.

Excellent Introduction to Islam

What made the experience of listening to No god but God the most enjoyable?

This book is filled with both historical information and contemporary relevance, but Aslan somehow manages to convey it all with brevity, depth, depth, and sincerity. He avoids the pitfalls of dogmatism or sounding preachy on the one hand while unapologetically remaining faithful to the spirit and intention of Islam on the other. I would recommend it highly to anyone with even a passing interest in Islam. I would especially recommend it to the opponents of Islam, or to anyone politically-minded, as it presents what I believe to be an accurate, measured account of the history of one of the world's great religions and sheds light on so many of the current conflicts in which our world is embroiled.

Have you listened to any of Shishir Kurup’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No, but Kurup's reading is excellent.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

We are not so different after all.

Good overview of Islam

This book is very well done and gives you a good overview of current world views in Islamic nations. You won't get this info from western media...they are too busy reporting on Miley Sirus and her dancing exhibitions!
If you have an interest in Islam...start here.

Makes the world’s 2nd largest religion clear...

If you could sum up No god but God in three words, what would they be?

Nearly a quarter of the global population is Muslim. If you don't know how their religion started, you can't possibly understand their most basic motivations...

very enlightening book

amazing book. breakdowns the fundamentals, sects ideals and the attempts and misinterpretation of the prophet and Koran definition of Islamic Democracy. Feel prouder to be a Muslim after listening to this book.