Very interesting narrative of early and developing Islamic world

Not quite as well written as dominion, however it’s still a fabulous book about parts of time which are rarely told to British audiences. Very interesting.

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In The Shadow of the Sword

Just read In The Shadow of the Sword by Tom Holland. Aspects of this book have caused controversy amongst some learned Muslims. I am a Catholic but I have equal respect for Islam (and for that matter Judaism). For that reason, I will not comment on the controversial passages and my rating (5 stars) excludes the controversial issues. This may appear a strange decision but in reality the passages in question are few. Moreover, it is my view, that issues relating to Islam are best represented by Muslims themselves and the same applies to Judaism & Christianity; followers of our respective religions should have the final (if not only) word on matters relating to our religions. Otherwise, this account of the end of the Roman and Persian empires and the Arab conquests is fascinating. In the West, the Persian empires are not given equal weight to the Roman (and Byzantium) empire. Tom Holland gives a more balanced representation of these great ancient empires and suggests the reasons for their downfall and the swift and unexpected Arab (and Islamic) conquests of lands formerly under Roman & Persian empires. Much is said about the differences and conflicts between our great religions and of course an historical account will bring these to the fore. However, there is also a link and common ground between the monotheistic faiths. This book is relevant to current times but does it assist in bringing these faiths closer together with mutual respect or does it highlight the differences ?

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6 people found this helpful

Meh

It's just a bit meh. I was really interested in this book but frequently lost concentration and nodded off. I'm not sure I learned that much and my overall feeling was that it shied away from any serious investigation of the faith for no doubt reasons of self preservation. Wanted to love it, but didn't

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Hard going

I think I will have to read his several times before I have a grasp of this story.
Too many names places etc.

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Epic

An epic and ambotious tome that is able to cover the whole scope of the Roman Empire, Christian Roman Empire, Persian Empires, Islam, Christianity and some Judaism all into one monumental. It zooms out to the epic conflicts and then hones in on intricate debates on Islamic historiography, Jewish roots of Christianity including the Nazarenes, and the ground-breaking insights into the cross-fertilisation that gave rise to Islam. It is simply epic.

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Masterfully woven

Hats off before this opus magnus! What a feat of scholarly mastery. The complexities and ambiguity of the Islamic history explored and explained through a dizzying array of facts, stories and speculations.

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Islam unrolled

complex history of the rise of Muslims well told.
Clear as possible, with some horrific moments
Not for the squeamish.

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Wonderful book, mediocre narration.

As expected of a Tom Holland book, this was a masterpiece. The narrator however ruined it for me. He seemed to get almost every single foreign word's pronunciation horribly wrong. I think narrators should first research their books before narrating them.

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Great book

Great book. Tremendous research. Narrator's voice is great too. My only crticism is the narrator's pronunciation of Arabic names and words could have been better. That's it.

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enlightening!

this book is a fascinating journey through the origins of Islam, and because the muslim sources are so few in regard of the actual birth of Islam, the author looks to the other civilizations surrounding it's cradle at the time to find clues as to what is true and what is fictional addition from later periods.



great narrator, thorough research. An intricate narrative that fits the complex cultural currents clashing at that time in that place.



highly recommend it!

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12 people found this helpful