The Mosaic of Islam: A Conversation with Perry Anderson

The Qur'an, we are told, was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad over a period of twenty-two years, between 610 and 632. Muslims believe that Muhammad was not literate, and so he could not himself have produced the Qur'an. He memorized it, and a few of his followers memorized some parts of it or wrote them down. Now, even though 23% of the global population are Muslims, there is still a huge amount of ignorance on the nature and history of their faith. In this fascinating and useful book the acclaimed writer Perry Anderson interviews the noted scholar of Islam, Suleiman Mourad, about the history of this extraordinary text and the religion it begat, drawing out how and when the Qu'ran was composed, the nature and history of the faith, and the complexities of its situation in the modern world.