cover image The Atlas of Islam: People, Daily Life and Traditions

The Atlas of Islam: People, Daily Life and Traditions

Neil Morris. Barron's Educational Series, $14.95 (64pp) ISBN 978-0-7641-5631-1

Copiously illustrated with photos, original art, maps and reproductions, the large-format Atlas of Islam: People, Daily Life and Traditions by Neil Morris devotes each of its spreads to single subjects (e.g., ""The Abbasids,"" ""Sufism"" and ""Islamic Spain""). Each spread includes an explanatory paragraph and about 18 extensively captioned color images. Beneath the high-impact visuals, however, the text can be confusing (""Muslims believe that Muhammad (c. 570-632 ce) was the last and seal of the prophets of Allah"") or disingenuous (""In recent years, some Islamist groups... have reacted to failure to achieve their ends by turning to violence. This has only served to heighten fear and distrust of Islam among non-Muslims"").