Reconciliation: Islam, Democracy, and the West.

• Author: Boru, Abdullahi
• Position: FURTHER READING - Brief article - Book review

RECONCILIATION: ISLAM, DEMOCRACY, AND THE WEST

Benazir Bhutto

(New York: HarperCollins, 2008), 352 pages.

Benazir Bhutto's Reconciliation, Islam, Democracy, and the West is a useful addition to the growing literature that addresses the congruence, or lack thereof, of democracy and Islam. In a bold, robust and historical analysis, she tackles this issue with a considerable degree of success.

One distinct aspect of her book is the attention given to the differences inherent within several distinct sects of Islam. She bluntly reminds Muslims that they should engage in collective introspection rather than externalizing all of their grievances. There is nothing new about this line of thought. What makes Bhutto's work refreshing is that someone of her caliber is courageous enough to address it from a point of knowledge as opposed to ignorance.

In this book, she has gone the extra mile in debunking some of the long held perceptions that the crisis within the Muslim Ummah began with the West. She illustrates instances in which intra-Muslim conflicts have wreaked more havoc than is readily acknowledged...