The Printed Page

Welcome to By the Chapter. This week’s featured book is Mother of the Believers: A Novel of the Birth of Islam by Kamran Pasha. Sharing hosting duties with me this week is Nicole from Linus’s Blanket.

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If you’re not familiar with Mother of the Believers: A Novel of the Birth of Islam here’s a little background on the book from FSB Associates:

Deep in the desert of seventh century Arabia, a new prophet named Muhammad has arisen. After he beholds a beautiful woman in a vision and resolves to marry her, the girl’s father quickly arranges the wedding. Aisha becomes the youngest of Muhammad’s twelve wives and her feisty nature and fierce intelligence establishes her as his favorite. But when Aisha is accused of adultery by her rivals, she loses the Prophet’s favor—and must fight to prove her innocence.

Pardoned by her husband after a divine revelation clears her name, Aisha earns the reluctant respect of Muslim men when their settlement in Medina is attacked and she becomes a pivotal player on the battlefield. Muhammad’s religious movement sweeps through Arabia and unifies the warring tribes, transforming him from prophet to statesman. But soon after the height of her husband’s triumph—the conquest of the holy city of Mecca—Muhammad falls ill and dies in Aisha’s arms.

A widow at age nineteen, Aisha fights to create a role for herself in the new Muslim empire—becoming an advisor to the Caliph of Islam, a legislator advocating for the rights of women and minorities, a teacher, and ultimately a warrior and military commander. She soon becomes one of the most powerful women in the Middle East, but her passionate nature leads to tragedy when her opposition to the Caliph plunges the Islamic world into civil war. The women of Islam view her as a hero, but Aisha is filled with uncertainty and regret whenever she considers her legacy.

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Today’s post is based on excerpts from Mr. Pasha’s blog post, Why my novel might shock you.

I could spend this post rehashing the story line but I really want to touch on some points that the author, Mr. Kamran Pasha, considers possible areas of controversy. After re-reading Mr. Pasha’s post I’m finding that an author’s take on their work might be quite different from a reader’s point of view. An author is more intimately, and passionately, involved with their characters, facts, time and place. Having spent countless hours living and breathing their subject matter, in a sense becoming an expert, they might be more sensitive to feelings that could arise from a reader’s point of view. I feel this is especially true when you tackle religion and politics. Both are intertwined in this story. I won’t attempt to touch on the points that relate specifically to a Muslim point of view simply because I’m not Muslim and therefore would have no basis for any comments.

From his blog: So there will be things in my book that surprise and shock some Muslims. But there are many aspects of “Mother of the Believers” that will startle, and perhaps anger, non-Muslims as well. The story is told from a Muslim point of view and directly addresses many of the critiques raised against Prophet Muhammad by non-Muslims. The Prophet was a compelling spiritual figure who was famed for remarkable acts of generosity and compassion, and his words still ring true with wisdom today. But he has also been maligned by Westerners for many aspects of his life. 

He thought Westerns might take issue with the following:

• The practice of polygamy
• The practice of warfare
• Aisha’s age when married to the Prophet Muhammad, may God’s blessings and peace be upon him. (anywhere from 9 to 13 to her early 20s)
• Some might label the Prophet anti-Semitic

Taken within the context of factual history, time and place none of the above offended me. When I first requested the book I was simply intrigued by story itself. Due to recent events in history and portrayals in Western media I’ve become interested in the history of Islam. Often Westerns hear and read conflicting views of this religion. Controversial wouldn’t have even have entered my mind if I hadn’t read his blog post, or author’s note, before starting Mother of the Believers. I think I went into the story looking for something that would offend me. I was digging for something and finding nothing. With religion and politics I think we sometimes seek to make issues where none exist. It’s become the nature of society today to stir up trouble merely because we are able to do so.

Polygamy/Underage marriage Taken within the context of the story’s setting polygamy was a matter of survival and a common practice. I wasn’t the least surprised that the Prophet had a household of multiple wives. What would have seemed unusual to me would have been if he’d married only one woman at a time. I’ve come to expect stories set in India and environs within similar time frames to have such households. John Shors’ beautiful love story, Beneath a Marble Sky, revolves around Shah Jahan, who is consumed by grief over the death of his empress, Mumtaz Mahal (she was his favorite, not his only). The Shah had a harem which is expected in such story. It’s part and parcel of this time in history. While I can’t speak for Mr. Shors’, nor should I, still I’ll presume that he didn’t expect there to be controversy over this aspect of his story.

What was practiced then is still practiced today. Under aged females forced into marriage is common as much as we’d like to think it isn’t. For those of us from the West we don’t need to look overseas for these practices (underage marriage/polygamy) as it happens in our own backyard so to speak. Look no farther than some groups of fundamentalist Mormons. While it offends me in terms of modern beliefs and practices I wasn’t offended by its portrayal in this story. Once again it’s a matter of historical context. It isn’t fair to attack an author who writes historical fiction based on documented fact. It’s not as if they are making it up as they go along. I believe Mr. Pasha handles this difficult subject matter very well. If you read the author’s note before starting this book you know exactly what the story entails and there are no surprises, or there shouldn’t be.

Warfare Today we fight wars based on religion. You only have to look to media headlines from the Middle East. Recent events on US soil were carried out based on radical interpretations of religious writing. Religious warfare is inevitable and will continue as long as two people with different religious opinions live. As much as Muhammad was a man of peace and strived to live such a life survival dictated that he use the necessary means available to ensure freedom and longevity. He was a man of compassion and his actions show us such. There is section in the story when he has defeated his enemy. Instead of calling for the deaths of all peoples by the laws of Islam he has the condemned die by their laws and those laws were mitigated by reading selected religious passages from their holy teachings. Do we have the right to condemn a man of history for what we continue to do today?

Anti-Semitic (this is the Wikipedia link) This never even crossed my mind. I took a trip to Wikipedia to clarify for myself the usage of this term. Here’s what I found:

Despite the use of the prefix “anti,” the terms Semitic and anti-Semitic are not directly opposed to each other (unlike similar-seeming terms such as anti-American or anti-Hellenic).Antisemitism refers specifically to prejudice against Jews alone and in general[1][2][5], despite the fact that there are other speakers of Semitic languages (e.g. Arabs or Assyrians) and that not all Jews speak a Semitic language. (In fact, at the time of the origin of the term, most Jews spoke Yiddish or Ladino, both Indo-European languages.)

While I can try to understand how one would make an argument for this fact I myself can’t do so. The Muslims had/have so many different enemies that to single out the Prophet as being anti-semitic doesn’t hold water for me. It could be because I’ve always associated this term with Adolf Hitler and the Third Reich. This story takes place centuries before that time in history. Intellectually I know that Jews have been persecuted throughout history. And once again I’ll claim lack of in-depth knowledge that keeps me from making this association.

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None of these 4 points has kept me from enjoying this book. It is very well written and researched. He does a wonderful job of relating what could be delicate subject matter. Because I have distance from this story line I can simply enjoy the story for what is – a look back at a important time in world history. This story is rich in detail transporting me to a place I haven’t been before. I’m thoroughly engrossed in this journey. For those of you shying away because of potential controversy I say give this book a try. I don’t think this is a story we should judge based on preconceived impressions.

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If you’ve read, or are currently reading, Mother of the Believers: A Novel of the Birth of Islam please share your thoughts with us.

*** This week’s reading scheduling: Monday: The Printed Page Tuesday: Nicole from Linus’s Blanket Wednesday: The Printed Page Thursday: Nicole from Linus’s Blanket Friday: The Printed Page/Nicole from Linus’s Blanket

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I’m a very visual person and love beautiful, or interesting, cover art. It entices, and invites, me to stop and take a peek instead of walking right on by. This week’s Cover Attraction is: Title: The Belly Dancer Author: Deanna Cameron Release date: July ’09

A scandal that shocks a nation.and a passion that transforms a woman.

At the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair, the modern, the exotic, and the ground-breaking collide. But Dora Chambers has more pressing matters to consider. Hoping to begin a life of wealth and privilege in Chicago, she sets out to earn the approval of the Fair’s Board of Lady Managers to appease her ambitious, aloof husband. Unimpressed, they give Dora the distasteful task of enforcing proper conduct at the Egyptian belly dancing exhibition.

But Dora’s sensibilities are not so easily flustered. She finds herself captivated by these exotic women, and by their enigmatic manager, Hossam Faruk, who makes his mistrust of her known – although his lingering glances hint at something else.

As Dora’s eyes are opened to the world beyond a life of social expectations and quiet servitude, she finds the courage to break free of her self-imposed bondage, and discovers the truth about the desire and passion in her own heart.

Thank goodness for Shelf Awareness. I remember loving this cover the first time I saw it months ago and had completely forgotten about it until Monday when it showed up in the ‘Author Buzz’ section at their website. I love everything about this cover. My wish list just grew by one book.

P.S. Because this is really about cover art I’ve given my Cover Attraction this week a picture frame.

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What’s your favorite cover attraction this week? Don’t forget to leave a link to your Cover Attraction post.

Welcome to By the Chapter. This week’s featured book is Mother of the Believers: A Novel of the Birth of Islam by Kamran Pasha.

Follow today’s discussion over at Nicole’s blog, Linus’s Blanket.

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This week’s reading scheduling: Monday: The Printed Page Tuesday: Nicole’s blog, Linus’s Blanket Wednesday: The Printed Page Thursday: Nicole’s blog, Linus’s Blanket Friday: The Printed Page/Nicole’s blog, Linus’s Blanket

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If you’ve read, or are currently reading, Mother of the Believers: A Novel of the Birth of Islam, please stop by and share your thoughts with us.

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If you’re new to Mailbox Monday welcome! Thank you to everyone who stops by Mailbox Monday. Whether you comment or visit I appreciate your taking the time to drop in.

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Honestly with my blog downtime, designing my own themes, hosting By the Chapter this week and working my paying job I didn’t have time to put together my MM post. I have 3 books but you’ll just have wait until next week to find out what they are.

If you tried emailing me between last Wednesday and Saturday night my email took a vacation and rejected everything. Please email me again (marcia [at] printedpage [dot] us) as my fabulously wonderful big brother slapped it around and got it functioning.

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Read It Forward details

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What books came into your house last week? Don’t forget to leave a link to your Mailbox post or a list of books if you don’t have a blog.

Welcome to By the Chapter. This week’s featured book is Mother of the Believers: A Novel of the Birth of Islam by Kamran Pasha. Sharing hosting duties with me this week is Nicole from Linus’s Blanket.

***

If you’re not familiar with Mother of the Believers: A Novel of the Birth of Islam here’s a little background on the book fromFSB Associates:

Deep in the desert of seventh century Arabia, a new prophet named Muhammad has arisen. After he beholds a beautiful woman in a vision and resolves to marry her, the girl’s father quickly arranges the wedding. Aisha becomes the youngest of Muhammad’s twelve wives and her feisty nature and fierce intelligence establishes her as his favorite. But when Aisha is accused of adultery by her rivals, she loses the Prophet’s favor—and must fight to prove her innocence.

Pardoned by her husband after a divine revelation clears her name, Aisha earns the reluctant respect of Muslim men when their settlement in Medina is attacked and she becomes a pivotal player on the battlefield. Muhammad’s religious movement sweeps through Arabia and unifies the warring tribes, transforming him from prophet to statesman. But soon after the height of her husband’s triumph—the conquest of the holy city of Mecca—Muhammad falls ill and dies in Aisha’s arms.

A widow at age nineteen, Aisha fights to create a role for herself in the new Muslim empire—becoming an advisor to the Caliph of Islam, a legislator advocating for the rights of women and minorities, a teacher, and ultimately a warrior and military commander. She soon becomes one of the most powerful women in the Middle East, but her passionate nature leads to tragedy when her opposition to the Caliph plunges the Islamic world into civil war. The women of Islam view her as a hero, but Aisha is filled with uncertainty and regret whenever she considers her legacy.

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Before I even started this book my interest was piqued beyond my usual love of historical fiction because I’d received an email from Fauzia Burke, President of FSB Associates thanking me for featuring Mr. Pasha’s book. I found this intriguing and thought there must be more to this particular book than meets the eye. After visiting the author’s website and reading some of the posts there I began to gather that Mother of the Believers might be a book to spark discussion. Because Mr. Pasha has chosen to write about Islam and Muslims, a religion and people steeped in controversy, he has stated that he expects there will be readers and scholars who will take issue with his portrayal of these events. OK interesting so far and maybe a bit daunting but most certainly not deterring. For me knowing this is a time and place in history peopled with characters that I have only the vaguest familiarity with I gave very little thought to his concerns. While I could certainly try to understand them I didn’t feel that I should let those concerns interfere with my reading. For more read his blog post, Why my novel might shock you.

I think Mr. Pasha might able to offer a unique perspective on these events. When authors are writing historical fiction they must rely on available documentation of the events and interpret such to fit their story. While this is the case for Mr. Pasha he also can offer the readers something the vast majority of writers in this genre cannot and that is a solid grounding in his subject matter. As stated by Mr. Pasha in the Author’s Note:  For the record I am a believing and practicing Muslim. Theologically I consider myself a Sunni, and spiritually I am drawn to Sufism, the mystical heart of Islam.

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I’m approximately a third of the way through the book. To this point the story has focused on the beginning, or birth, of Islam and a young female child, Aisha, who is destined to be the future wife of the Prophet Muhammad, may God’s blessings and peace be upon him. The Muslims have been persecuted and driven from the city of Mecca by Quraysh tribal leaders (it was the tribe to which the Islamic Prophet Muhammad belonged, as well as the tribe that led the initial opposition to his message) who fear that the teachings of Islam will bring down their way of life. The background of Islam is interesting and the author does a nice job of framing the story for what is to come later.

It may be because I’m not really into the heart of the story yet but I haven’t come across any subject matter that I would consider controversial. I’m really just enjoying the story and absorbing the events surrounding the first Muslims. As with any topic at hand in the world today you will have your hardliners gracing either end of the spectrum. You’ll also have fanatics, conservatives, liberals and those who fall somewhere in middle. My lack of knowledge may be a blessing in this case as I can just sit back and read without any prejudices and presupposed ideas to hinder my journey. I’m looking forward to reading more about Aisha, as she assumes the role of Mother of the Believers. It appears that her odyssey won’t be easy and she’ll falter along the way.   ***

If you’ve read, or are currently reading, Mother of the Believers: A Novel of the Birth of Islam please share your thoughts with us.

*** This week’s reading scheduling: Monday: The Printed Page Tuesday: Nicole from Linus’s Blanket Wednesday: The Printed Page Thursday: Nicole from Linus’s Blanket Friday: The Printed Page/Nicole from Linus’s Blanket

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** Due to spamming commenting is closed on this post 5/09/09 **

Now that I can play with WP themes I bought a design program today, Artisteer, and took my very 1st stab at designing my own site. The theme you’re seeing is mine, all mine. It was a lot of fun and didn’t really take a lot of time. So should it stay or should it go? Don’t be afraid to let me know what you think after all you have to look at it every time you stop by.

Now that I have skills (LOL) don’t be surprised at what you next see next! 

Actually I’ve started on my next design. Taking all the tricks I learned from putting this one together really fast I’m spending lots of time on the next one. It’s done up in browns and I’m hoping you’ll like it as much as I do. I expect to debut it sometime next week.