New Books in Islamic Studies
This podcast is a channel on the New Books Network. The New Books Network is an academic audio library dedicated to public education. In each episode you will hear scholars discuss their recently published research with another expert in their field.
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Afsar Mohammad, “The Festival of Pirs: Popular ...
Several studies about Islam in Asian contexts highlight the pluralistic environment that Muslims inhabit and interplay of various religious traditions that color local practice and thought. In The Festival of Pirs: Popular Islam and Shared Devotion in ...
20 min
852
Rebecca Williams, “Muhammad and the Supernatura...
Rebecca Williams‘ book Muhammad and the Supernatural: Medieval Arab Views (Routledge, 2013) is one of the newest additions to the Routledge Studies in Classic Islam series. Despite the Qur’anic proclamation that the only “miracle” which served as proof...
71 min
853
Ahmed El Shamsy, “The Canonization of Islamic L...
In his brilliant new book, The Canonization of Islamic Law: A Social and Intellectual History (Cambridge UP, 2013), Ahmed El Shamsy, Assistant Professor of Islamic Studies at the University of Chicago, explores the question of how the discursive tradit...
64 min
854
Carla Bellamy, “The Powerful Ephemeral: Everyda...
In The Powerful Ephemeral: Everyday Healing in an Ambiguously Islamic Place (University of California Press, 2011), Carla Bellamy explores the role of saint shrines in India, while focusing on a particular venue known as Husain Tekri, or “Husain Hill.
59 min
855
Rumee Ahmed, “Narratives of Islamic Legal Theor...
How should one understand Islamic law outside of its application? What happens when we think about religious jurisprudence theoretically? For medieval Muslim scholars this was the field where one could enumerate the meaning and purpose of Islamic law.
58 min
856
Agostino Cilardo, “The Early History of Islamil...
Al-QÄá¸Ä« al-Nu῾mÄn (d. 363/974) was the primary architect of IsmÄ῾īlÄ« jurisprudence which was formed under the Fatamids. The Early History of Ismaili Jurisprudence (I. B. Tauris, 2013) provides an English translation and edited Arabic editio...
41 min
857
Teena Purohit, “The Aga Khan Case: Religion and...
How does colonial power, both discursive and institutional, transform the normative boundaries and horizons of religious identities? Teena Purohit, Assistant Professor of Religion at Boston University, examines this question in The Aga Khan Case: Relig...
59 min
858
Mohammed Rustom, “The Triumph of Mercy: Philoso...
What is the relationship between philosophy, mysticism, and scripture in the Islamic tradition? Mohammed Rustom, Associate Professor of Islamic Studies at Carleton University, has been thinking about this question for years.
61 min
859
Sarra Tlilli, “Animals in the Qur’an” (Cambridg...
In her book Animals in the Qur’an (Cambridge University Press, 2012), Sarra Tlili carefully addresses a complex issue. What does the Qur’an say about non-human animals? And their relationship to humans? Tlili begins her study by discussing conceptions ...
60 min
860
Paul O’Connor, “Islam in Hong Kong: Muslims and...
What does the everyday experience of Muslim minorities look like? We have often heard about what Muslims deal with in the West. But what about Muslim minorities in the East? This was one of the questions Paul O’Connor,
57 min
861
Nancy Khalek, “Damascus after the Muslim Conque...
A top five finalist for the Best First Book in the History of Religion Award, Damascus after the Muslim Conquest (Oxford University Press, 2011) by Nancy Khalek, professor of Religious Studies at Brown University, is a study of the city of Damascus,
38 min
862
R. Kevin Jaques, “Ibn Hajar: Makers of Islamic ...
Robert Kevin Jaques‘ work, Ibn Hajar: Makers of Islamic Civilization (I. B. Tauris, 2013), focuses on the life of one of the most eminent Muslim scholars, Ibn Ḥajar al-‘AsqalÄnÄ« (d. 852/1449). Jaques provides his readers with a concise yet intimate...
83 min
863
Mohammad Khalil, “Islam and the Fate of Others:...
In his book Free to Learn: Why Unleashing the Instinct to Play Will Make Our Children Happier, More Self-Reliant, and Better Students for Life (Basic Books, 2013), Peter Gray proposes the following big idea: we shouldn’t force children to learn,
45 min
864
Justin Jones, “Shi’a Islam in Colonial India: R...
Justin Jones‘ book, Shi’a Islam in Colonial India: Religion, Community and Sectarianism (Cambridge University Press, 2012) is all about Lucknow, and colonial India, and Shia Islam – and the links and interlinks between these and the outer world.
66 min
865
Martin Nguyen, “Sufi Master and Qur’an Scholar:...
The famous Abu’l-Qasim al-Qushayri (d. 465/1072) is well known as one of the most influential figures in the formative period of Sufism. He was part of a network of prominent Sufis in Nishapur that were shaping the competing forms of spirituality durin...
65 min
866
Patrick Dunleavy, “The Fertile Soil of Jihad: T...
Patrick Dunleavy is the author of The Fertile Soil of Jihad: Terrorism’s Prison Connection (Potomac Books, 2011). He provides us with a fascinating insight into the radicalization process within the prison system.
36 min
867
Aaron Hughes, “Theorizing Islam: Disciplinary D...
Many academics, especially in the aftermath of September 11th, have had to become a public authority on Islam. This is largely due to the ongoing negative portrayal of Muslims in the media and the numerous misconceptions individuals derive from these p...
60 min
868
Juliane Hammer, “American Muslim Women, Religio...
In 2005, Amina Wadud led a mixed-gender congregation of Muslims in prayer. This event became the focal point of substantial media attention and highlighted some of the tensions within the Muslim community. However,
65 min
869
Karen Ruffle, “Gender, Sainthood, and Everyday ...
What does a wedding in Karbala in the year 680 have to do with South Asian Muslims today? As it turns out, this event informs contemporary ideas of personal piety and social understanding of gender roles. The battlefield wedding of Qasem and Fatimah Ku...
63 min
870
Whitney Bodman, “The Poetics of Iblis: Narrativ...
The Qur’an is filled with stories. It chronicles the lives of prophets, the stories of believers and non-believers, and lays out the creation of the cosmos. However, the Qur’an’s narrative qualities are often overlooked. Recently,
63 min
871
Steve Kemper, “Labyrinth of Kingdoms: 10,000 Mi...
Three years ago I travelled overland with my wife from Victoria Falls through Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania. It felt like we were on a real adventure. Having just read Steve Kemper‘s excellent book Labyrinth of Kingdoms: 10,
48 min
872
Ann Elizabeth Mayer, “Islam and Human Rights: T...
In the new edition to Islam and Human Rights: Traditions and Politics (Westview Press, 2012), Ann Elizabeth Mayer analyzes the complex issue of international human rights standards in Muslim countries. In the book’s preface, Dr.
51 min
873
Sherine Hamdy, “Our Bodies Belong to God: Organ...
One of the best things about co-hosting New Books in STS is the opportunity to discover books like this one. Sherine Hamdy has given us something special in Our Bodies Belong to God: Organ Transplants, Islam,
58 min
874
Nabil Matar and Gerald MacLean, “Britain and th...
Nineteenth-century observers would say that the British Empire was an Islamic one; be that as it may, before Empire there was trade- and lots of it. Nabil Matar and Gerald MacLean‘s book, Britain and the Islamic World,
66 min
875
Carl Ernst, "How to Read the Qur'an: A New Guid...
An interview with Carl Ernst
57 min