A Fury for God by Malise Ruthven

A Fury for God by Malise Ruthven is an inconsistent read in my opinion.

The subtitle "The Islamist Attack on America" and associated press quotes suggest it's focus is completely on the aftermath of 9/11 and why it happened. While the book does cover this in some areas, it is much more the history of the Islamic religion, and Muslim people. It feels almost like the book was planned/mostly written pre-9/11 and when the attacks took place the author took advantage to make her book more topical.

That is not to say that he book is not interesting, as in places it certainly is. The sections on the formation of Israel, the CIA's involvement in Afghanistan and USA/UK support of Saddam Hussein in the Iran/Iraq ware are fascinating. They really highlight the hypocrisy of the current US/UK policies in each of these areas.

Also when the book does analyse the specifics behind 9/11 and subsequent attacks it is interesting, although a little light on detail - almost like an afterthought as I said earlier.

I have two main criticisms of the book, both regarding the accessibility of the book. Firstly, in places, the level of detail that adds little to the underlining point that seems to be the focus. As such it is almost impossible to make sense of it all. Secondly, the way the book is structured makes reading anything but easy. Within each (long) chapter there are no clear breaks as the subject matter moves on. With the two things combined it makes the book a really unsatisfying read in places.

Would I recommend it? If you are looking for an in-depth analysis of al-Qa'ida and Bin Laden then this is not the book for you. If you want to understand the wider picture of Islam, and it's foundations and factions then this could be the book or you. I certainly learned a lot from reading it... just not what I expected to learn!