Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World Through Islamic Eyes Paperback – April 27, 2010

I'm a major history buff. However, I'll freely admit to having done much more reading in American history than other topics. For example, I've read more biographies of George Washington than I have histories on Asia and the Middle East combined (unless maybe you give me partial credit for Japan and World War II). And, while such a trend is unlikely to change completely, I have started making some effort to branch out. An early pick for this effort was Tamim Ansary's 2009 Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World Through Islamic Eyes. Ansary's ambitious attempt to introduce the Islamic view of world history is fantastic, and well worth reading for any history fan, especially those like me who have been provincial in their previous reading.Ansary, who was born of an Afghan father and American mother in Afghanistan and moved to the United States in high school, is very well-suited to act as a bridge for the two worlds for his readers. He is able to see Islamic culture from an insider's point of view while also recognizing its place in relation to the Western view of history, and explain all of that to a Western audience - no small task, that.Ansary begins with a brief introduction the Middle East (itself a very Western-centric term, of course) before Muhammad's arrival on the scene. He then devotes a large segment of the book to Muhammad's time and that of the first four Caliph's to follow him. Since this was obviously such a major event in the formation of Islamic culture and outlook, the detailed look at this period is worth the space devoted to it, as it shapes everything that follows.The book then moves into detailing the political, social, and religious changes in and challenges to Islam over the years, and how even dividing that into three themes as I did is an artificial external imposition, since from within Islam, the political, social, and religious are so often all one thread.Ansary introduces all the major empires, religious schisms, and so on, until the Western narrative collides with Islam, at first with the minor - as far as Islam was concerned - detail of the Crusades - and then later in the 18th and 19th centuries as Western powers and greedy rulers slowly end up with foreigners calling the shots, openly or behind the scenes, in many major Islamic former powers. Ansary then details the natural response to that from Islam as it has sought to take back its own destiny.Ansary does an amazing job of bringing all the historical figures to life and entertaining the reader. As he states in his introduction, his approach is less an academic tome and more a conversation about just what the heck is going on over there with Islam. For such a broad and sweeping attempt to introduce the Islamic view of the world to readers unfamiliar with it, it's a perfect approach to engage while educating.I listened to Blackstone Audio's 2009 production of the book, narrated by Ansary himself. The production was very well done, and Ansary does a fantastic job. Author narration can be hit or miss, but Ansary really hits a great tone that's easy to listen to and indeed fits his conversational writing approach, and he nails all the pronunciation that another reader would trip over. The unabridged production runs approximately 17.5 hours.I've become a fan of Ansary with Destiny Disrupted, and I definitely plan to read more from him - and if possible listen to him. His history of Afghanistan, Games Without Rules, also self-narrated, is high on my to read list. I also aim to read more about some of the topics Ansary introduces from other authors, so much has my curiosity been piqued. Ansary does an amazing job of making a vital part of world history accessible to the average Western reader. Given the modern state of the world, it's imperative we Americans understand how our two cultures ended up where we are. Ansary's Destiny Disrupted is an excellent place to start.

On the recommendation of the Amazon community, I picked up _Destiny Disrupted_. In a word, it was marvelous. Ansary aims to write a history of the Middle East from the perspective of the Middle East and succeeds brilliantly. His writing is almost conversational (writing for a broad audience rather than an exculsively academic one), but his treatment of the subject is thorough and comprehensive. The first four chapters alone are worth the price of the book, as he gives the best summary of the birth, growth and expansion of Islam I have read. What a treat, then, to have an additional thirteen chapters discussing the intellectual flowering if Islamic thought and the later challenges and crises the Islamic world faced after 1000.Most readers, however, will want to read the last few chapters in which he explains the intellectial and political divisions within Islam, and the role (as both proxy and perpetrator) the United States plays. In particular, his treatment of the American involvement with Mossadeq in Iran (coupled with our involvement with the Suez crisis in 1956 and the material support for Israel in 1973) should be mandatory reading - it does much to explain the mistrust and frustration (notice I don't use the word "anger" here) the Islamic world has towards the US and our policies in the Middle East. I was also struck by his treatment of Israel; it is uncommon to find a writer who is able to explain the myriad of forces at work there with as much objectivity as Ansary does.In brief, Ansary shows that there is no "clash of civilizations" between the West and the Islamic world, but rather "the friction generated by two mismatched histories intersecting." I wholly agree. If we are to ever understand each other, the first place we must begin is by understanding each other's histories - and better still, to empathize and see how events and actions have not only influenced, but been perceived by the other side. Ansary's work is an excellent effort in this regard. Highly (and enthusiastically) recommended.