1. To think that this has been going on for more than the last fourteen hundred years is staggering. To merely think of only the number of little African boys that have been killed and mutilated in the name of these outrageously organised criminals, masquerading under the guise of a religion, stuns credibility. A “religion” that encourages its adherents to exterminate others that do not share its beliefs. Millions of innocent little African boys must have lost their lives to these hideous practices. And the little African girls that have been haremised by this “religion”. This is certainly the equivalent of “King Leopold’s Ghost”.

   “A quest for inter-religious dialogue?” Thorough Nonsense!!! More a case for world expose`, and most certainly one for bringing these criminals before an international forum for justice. This is unmitigated criminality. The contents of this book must be given all the publicity it merits. The highest credit to John Alembillah Azumah for exposing these activities to the world’s attention in writing this book.
   Rating: 5 / 5

2. This is a well written, deeply researched and balanced presentation of the less than benign role of Islam in Africa and the devastating Muslim slave trade, which overwhelms the Alantic slave trade in duration, extent and brutality. It carefully distinguishes the context, motivations, and impact of pre-Islamic slavery in Africa from the more economically, politically and religiously motivated and sanctioned fourteen centuries of Muslim slavery in Africa. It reviews centuries of Arabic, Persian, and Turkish works back to even medieval times which demonize blacks as “…lazy, stupid, evil-smelling and lecherous slaves…”, or “untruthful, vicious, sexually unbridled, ugly and distorted…”, or being “nothing more or less than the symbol of wickedness and barbarism…”, or which claim that “the Negro does not differ from an animal in anything except his hands have been lifted from the earth”, and thus justifiably questions if `the extent to which racial prejudice in Western Europe against blacks could have Muslim influences, since the former owes much of its medieval literature and philosophical tradition to Muslims’.

   Especially sobering is the observation that by ‘…placing blacks under a mythological curse, stereotyping and stigmatizing them on account of the content of their belief and color of their skin, Muslims of all races waged war against and raided Africans, killing millions and reducing others to slaver of the last 14 centuries.’

   It is noted that while both the non-Muslim and Muslim worlds must understand these ugly facts, Muslims in particular must also accept the Muslim share of responsibility for the consequent centuries of untold pain and suffering heaped on Africans by the introduction of a foreign religion and in the name of the God of that religion, if there is to be constructive dialogue between the two.

   This is powerful read for anyone interested in more than an apologia for Islam in Africa.
   
   Rating: 5 / 5

3. This book gives an entirely new perspective on the history of the spread of Islam in Africa. It argues that while Christianity has had a great deal written about its negative impact on African culture and religions, and its role in the slave trade, Islam on the hand has been perceived as a natural fit for the Africans and one which spread without resort to violence, slavery and other sins that Christians were guilty of. Azumah argues credibly that this perception is biased and uncritical. And that the evidence would suggest otherwise. An excellent read for those interested in the history of religion in Africa.
   Rating: 5 / 5

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