Current interest in Islam and the Muslim world has grown for reasons both good and bad. It is now a hot topic in schools, colleges and universities, with proliferating study programmes, as well as cultural and political and academic interest in the wider community. Thomson/Gale's well‐established stable of encyclopedias has responded to this interest by publishing a topical and highly readable two‐volume encyclopedia covering both Islam, specifically, and the wider Muslim world. This is a useful addition too, to reference collections in public libraries serving significant numbers of school and college students, as well as cross‐cultural users.
As well as looking at mainstream religious topics (like the Qur'an, the Hadith, Shi'a and Sunni, and relationships between Islam and other faiths), the encyclopedia also examines the rich historical and contemporary social and cultural practices, political science and law, economics and arts in the wider Muslim world, such as South‐East Asia. Some 500 articles have been brought together under the general editorship of Richard Martin (Professor of Islamic Studies at Emory University in Atlanta). Contributors come from around the world, and the range and scholarship are impressive and well‐mediated for the target audience.
Rapid changes in Islam, as well as in world perceptions of its role and impact, mean that reference works need continually to remain current, and for students (the most likely users of this work) to address the issues of the twenty‐first century. As a result, the encyclopedia is strong on Islamic politics and modernization and topics such as secularism, Taliban, reform and renewal, feminism and human rights, and Muslim networks in the information age. All might be pursued further through associated materials and Internet sites, some of which may be more specialized, and even too biased.
This reviewer was able to examine volume 2 of the encyclopedia. Entries were readable and clear, non‐pedantic and approachable by readers with relatively little knowledge of Islam, and ranging across religious and cultural issues, from Allah to medicine, Shi'a to sultanates, Abd al‐Nasser to Karbala, homosexuality to the Saudi Dynasty and ulema to Persian language and literature. Knowledge of original languages is not expected of the reader, names are clear and easily indexed, a glossary of key terms is provided, and genealogies and timelines clarify the complex history of the Muslim world. Religious practice is set within a coherent historical and cultural context, topics like terrorism and political thought are explained objectively, and a fine understanding of the historical fusion of religion and politics is shown (essential for Western readers accustomed to greater separation between them).
The encyclopedia wisely draws out the idiosyncrasies of the many Muslim states, and avoids over‐generalization and stereotypes. This is a work useful across the curriculum at school and college levels, as well as a helpful quick reference source, above all for the non‐specialist in the university library. The Gale Web site provides an indicative breakdown of how articles might service various parts of the curriculum, and for US readers fit to state standards. The librarian will find it durably bound and that bibliographical information is provided to guide future selection.
