The Story Of Muhammad Told Anew

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By Newsweek Editors

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When travel writer and historian Barnaby Rogerson first heard a Tunisian storyteller give an impassioned account of an incident from the life of the Prophet Muhammad, he was instantly captivated. The audience of modern Muslims alternately groaned and laughed, gripped by the ancient saga. The experience ultimately propelled Rogerson to write "The Prophet Muhammad: A Biography," in an effort to bring the story of Muhammad--which he calls "the Shakespeare, the Aeschylus, the Euripides, the Milton, the Pinter, the complete works of mankind combined in one coherent tale"--to Western audiences. It succeeds wonderfully.

Entwined with Rogerson's well-told yarn are insights into the origins of Muslim culture and practice. He explains the avoidance of alcohol and gambling, the call to prayer and even the minaret, that "architectural exclamation mark on the horizon." He doesn't shy from tackling more fraught questions, including the meaning of jihad, or the implications of the brutal battles Muhammad fought to establish Muslim dominance over Bedouin tribes.

Biographies of Muhammad often consist of an endless sequence of conquests and wars. But Rogerson delves deeper, into the spiritual and moral framework of the prophet's life, placing into historical context things like Muhammad's polygamy or his massacre of a Jewish tribe at Medina. Rogerson's lush, lively description of how a new world religion grew from the life of a single remarkable man proves that with understanding, fearful differences can become a source of wonder.

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