Akbar S. Ahmed is a Fellow of Selwyn College, Cambridge, and has been a Visiting Professor at Princeton and Harvard Universities. He is the author of numerous books and articles.

"Get a true picture of the religion distorted by Osama bin Laden in this Oprah recommended guide to the Muslim world." - Guardian

• Part 1 Introduction: raising questions - Islam and the west; locating the key to unlock Muslim society; misunderstanding Muslims; questions for our age. Part 2 What is Islam? the messenger - the prophet of Islam; the message - the holy Quran; Sunni and Shia divisions in Islam. Part 3 The challenge of the past - empires and dynasties: early Muslim history - the great Arab dynasties; the ideal model of European society - Muslim Spain; the Ottomans, 1300-1922; the Safavids, 1501-1857. Part 4 When worlds collide - Muslim nations and western modernity: the dilemmas of modern Turkey; Iran's Islamic quest; India and the creation of Pakistan and Bangladesh; issues in modernity -democracy, family, and identity. Part 5 Muslims as minorities: the problem of Muslim minorities; Muslims in the west; frontier Muslims -Islam in the Outer Hebrides; Islam in central Asia; the Muslims of India - a people in search of a destiny. Part 6 Islam in the age of the western media: Islam and the west - confrontation or consensus? concluding thoughts.

Akbar S. Ahmed is a Fellow of Selwyn College, Cambridge, and has been a Visiting Professor at Princeton and Harvard Universities. He is the author of numerous books and articles.

"Get a true picture of the religion distorted by Osama bin Laden in this Oprah recommended guide to the Muslim world." - Guardian

• Part 1 Introduction: raising questions - Islam and the west; locating the key to unlock Muslim society; misunderstanding Muslims; questions for our age. Part 2 What is Islam? the messenger - the prophet of Islam; the message - the holy Quran; Sunni and Shia divisions in Islam. Part 3 The challenge of the past - empires and dynasties: early Muslim history - the great Arab dynasties; the ideal model of European society - Muslim Spain; the Ottomans, 1300-1922; the Safavids, 1501-1857. Part 4 When worlds collide - Muslim nations and western modernity: the dilemmas of modern Turkey; Iran's Islamic quest; India and the creation of Pakistan and Bangladesh; issues in modernity -democracy, family, and identity. Part 5 Muslims as minorities: the problem of Muslim minorities; Muslims in the west; frontier Muslims -Islam in the Outer Hebrides; Islam in central Asia; the Muslims of India - a people in search of a destiny. Part 6 Islam in the age of the western media: Islam and the west - confrontation or consensus? concluding thoughts.

Akbar S. Ahmed is a Fellow of Selwyn College, Cambridge, and has been a Visiting Professor at Princeton and Harvard Universities. He is the author of numerous books and articles.

"Get a true picture of the religion distorted by Osama bin Laden in this Oprah recommended guide to the Muslim world." - Guardian

• Part 1 Introduction: raising questions - Islam and the west; locating the key to unlock Muslim society; misunderstanding Muslims; questions for our age. Part 2 What is Islam? the messenger - the prophet of Islam; the message - the holy Quran; Sunni and Shia divisions in Islam. Part 3 The challenge of the past - empires and dynasties: early Muslim history - the great Arab dynasties; the ideal model of European society - Muslim Spain; the Ottomans, 1300-1922; the Safavids, 1501-1857. Part 4 When worlds collide - Muslim nations and western modernity: the dilemmas of modern Turkey; Iran's Islamic quest; India and the creation of Pakistan and Bangladesh; issues in modernity -democracy, family, and identity. Part 5 Muslims as minorities: the problem of Muslim minorities; Muslims in the west; frontier Muslims -Islam in the Outer Hebrides; Islam in central Asia; the Muslims of India - a people in search of a destiny. Part 6 Islam in the age of the western media: Islam and the west - confrontation or consensus? concluding thoughts.