"The definitive biography of an American icon, from a New York Times best-selling author with unique access to Ali's inner circle. He was the wittiest, the prettiest, the strongest, the bravest, and, of course, the greatest (as he told us himself). Muhammad Ali was one of the twentieth century's most fantastic figures and arguably the most famous man on the planet. But until now, he has never been the subject of a complete, unauthorized biography. Jonathan Eig, hailed by Ken Burns as one of America's master storytellers, radically reshapes our understanding of the complicated man who was Ali. Eig had access to all the key people in Ali's life, including his three surviving wives and his managers. He conducted more than 500 interviews and uncovered thousands of pages of previously unreleased FBI and Justice Department files, as well dozens of hours of newly discovered audiotaped interviews from the 1960s. Collectively, they tell Ali's story like never before--the story of a man who was flawed and uncertain and brave beyond belief. "I am America," he once declared. "I am the part you won't recognize. But get used to me--black, confident, cocky; my name, not yours; my religion, not yours; my goals, my own. Get used to me." He was born Cassius Clay in racially segregated Louisville, Kentucky, the son of a sign painter and a housekeeper. He went on to become a heavyweight boxer with a dazzling mix of power and speed, a warrior for racial pride, a comedian, a preacher, a poet, a draft resister, an actor, and a lover. Millions hated him when he changed his religion, changed his name, and refused to fight in the Vietnam War. He fought his way back, winning hearts, but at great cost. Like so many boxers, he stayed too long. Jonathan Eig's Ali reveals Ali in the complexity he deserves, shedding important new light on his politics, religion, personal life, and neurological condition. Ali is a story about America, about race, about a brutal sport, and about a courageous man who shook up the world."--Publisher's description

Excerpt from Mohammed and the Rise of Islam The biographers Prophet Mohammed form a long series which it is impossible to end, but in which it would be honourable to find a place. The most famous of them is probably Sir Walter Raleigh, while the palm for eloquence and historical insight may well be awarded to Gibbon. During the time when Gibbon wrote, and for long after, historians mainly relied for their knowledge of the life of Mohammed on the Biography of Abu'l-Fida, who died in the year 722 A.H., 1322 A.D., of whose work Gagnier produced an indifferent edition. The scholars of the nineteenth century were naturally not satisfied with so late an authority; and they succeeded in bringing to light all the earliest documents preserved by the Mohammedans. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

This intellectual biography of Muhammad al-Shawkani, one of the founding fathers of modern Islamic reformism, is also a study of an important transitional period in Yemeni history which saw the shift from traditional Shi'ism to Sunni reformism. The transition propelled political, religious and social change. While Shawkani espoused a socio-religious order which echoed aspects of Western thinking, the book demonstrates that it was indigenous to Islamic thought. Shawkani's ideas remain vital to the intellectual debates happening in Islam today.

A festschrift comprising ten contributions by British, American, and Israeli scholars assessing some of the most famous Jewish travelers, writers, and scholars and their contributions to understanding of the Islamic world. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

This is a reprint of the late professor's work on Jamal al-Din al-Afghani (1838-1879) and his well-known Egyptian discipline Muhammad 'Abduh (1849-1905), the Mufti of Egypt. These two men have generally been seen as devout Muslims who helped rejuvenate their religion which had been stagnating for many centuries. The author provides evidence which suggests that these two men were involved in Islam's small and silent atheist movement which had a subversive rather than constructive influence on mainstream Islam. He also examines Afghani's and 'Abduh's political activities in Egypt before and during 'Urabi's revolt of 1870 and in the process throws new light on Egypt's politics during this turbulent decade. He argues that Afghani could have been a Russian agent, possibly a French one and probably offered his services to the British.