I first heard about this book via Deb Robson's blog and, intrigued, I checked our local library where I found it on the shelf.
In the current world political arena I find myself uneducated and under informed about a whole great big chunk of history. While in school I never found History to be very compelling - unless it was put into a social (or personal) context. A dry recitation of dates of battles and lineages of kings failed to fascinate.
Tell me the story of how historical events impacted on individuals and I am there. Which is why I read a fair amount of historical fiction - Dorothy Dunnett, Lindsey Davis, Sharan Newman, Sharon Kay Penman and so on. These authors, while writing a fictional story, use real events and social context to flesh out their narratives. And I find that fascinating. I'm much more interested in why people do things rather than just finding out about what it was they did.
I wasn't really sure what Destiny Disrupted was going to be like, simply taking Deb's recommendation that it was worth reading, but I found the 'story arc' (as Ansary refers to it) compelling.
Ansary comes from a background that embraces both east and west. He writes well, with a certain amount of acerbic wit (which I always enjoy). But mostly I appreciate his placing events into historic context, showing the development of Islam society, the growth of the Muslim religion, and how it grew in conjunction with European events.
I'm about 1/3 of the way through the book and am very glad I picked it up. I've also requested the library bring in one of Ansary's other books - the story of his personal journey. I'm certain it will be fascinating reading, too.
1 comment:
So many books, so little time!
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