Allah, Liberty & Love

May 9, 2011
The controversial Manji follows up The Trouble with Islam Today with the surprising Allah, Liberty, and Love. Whereas Manji's first book brazenly critiqued all things Islamicâfrom the Qur'an, Muhammad, and mosques to individual MuslimsâManji here generally speaks admiringly of her Islamic faith. Although Manji has some interesting ideas, such as desiring to bring into the tent those Muslims seen as "countercultural," her counterarguments directed at Muslim women who wear hijab (the veil) as a feminist statement are simply narrow. The book suffers from manipulative attempts at drawing sympathy from the reader, including constant references to the death threats she receives, how such threats invoke anxiety in her mother, and exhaustive quoting of nasty e-mails sent to Manji (both from Muslims and non-Muslims) and her responses. The result is a tit-for-tat pace that might work better on cable television. Though Manji urges readers to strive for moral courage in the tradition of great leaders (many of whom Manji compares herself to, such as Martin Luther King Jr.), her combative tone may only invite more nasty e-mails from those who disagree.