A book I wasnt initially keen on reading at first but was left impressed
“Don’t judge a book by it’s cover” is what the saying goes, something that I did all too quickly when plucking out The Islamist by Ed Husain from a bookshelf in my local library. I made an assumption that I knew what the book about Islamic extremists would include, but after reading, I was left pleasantly surprised.
My initial feelings before reading were that it would be about how Husain went from extremism to a dramatic transformation where he renounced his previous beliefs. The book cover entitled ‘Why I joined radical Islam in Britain, what I saw inside and why I left’ gave me an eerie feeling that my thoughts about the book were correct. To some degree it was, but it added unique depth into his turn around as he went digging deeper to find some much needed relaxation to him as a person.
Husain reveals the journey he went through from being a 16-year-old and joining radical organisations to his own personal scepticisms of what he was promoting, to undergoing his own deeper investigation into Islam and its different understandings. This involved trips to Syria and then Saudi Arabia, where he continued to show the other side of the country where Islam’s holiest sites are based. It also looks at the cultural differences in the Arab world and the UK, as he tries to understand the view point of different form of Islam such as Wahabbism.
I found myself agreeing with some of Husain’s post-extremism life, especially in the last few chapters as he discusses his return to Britain after a two year spell in Syria and Saudi Arabia. Such as his feelings on the political situation here, and the role of race and religion that played in voting for political party candidates. Something that I have noticed the trend of voting because “We know this guy and he’s Pakistani” or Muslim etc, so lets vote for him. In the local elections this year, I decided to vote for the Liberal Democrats rather than vote for Labour, as some of my family members were as one of the candidates was something who we knew.
Personally, anyone who decides to transform their lives from bad or incorrect ways and genuinely tries to become a better person deserves recognition for being able to realise that they need to make a change.
But in the circles of Islamic extremism, these ‘transformations’ are viewed very cynically as a money making opportunity and a chance to avoid a spell in Her Majesty’s pleasure in a jail cell. An example of this would be ex-extremist Hasan Butt, who I do remember renouncing his ways and was about to start work on a book, so it’s expected to attract thoughts of earning some pounds to their bank balances.
With Husain’s book, I get the feeling he was someone who was impressionable and found himself in a web of mixed emotions. After a student was stabbed to death by a friend of his, it began a long journey of establishing a peaceful soul within himself.
To conclude, it’s easy to have a cynical point of view and say “He did it for the money” which he is entitled to earn a living from his experiences. But as a first time reader of this particular type of book, it was an insight into a world that I fortunately, have never gone and never will go close to.
The Islamist, Ed Hussain, Penguin Books, 286 pages, £8.99
