Sadakat Kadri

Greatly enriches our understanding of a much misunderstood subject

[A] lively, yet scholarly, book... Kadri is an ideally positioned guide

Intellectually nimble and rigorously researched . . . admirably clear-eyed . . . Kadri is a precise and stylish writer, as good at explicating abstruse arguments as he is at conjuring vivid scenes . . . this brave and sane book could not be more timely

Learned, level-headed, engaging, Kadri's [book] deserves praise on every front

[An] erudite and instructive book... Captivating

[A] fascinating journey . . . Kadri approaches his themes with unstinting humanity and intelligence, as well as great fluency

You will come across...a fresh eye, and a clear perspective, in Sadakat Kadri's new book, Heaven on Earth. Learned, level-headed, engaging, Kadri's "journey through Shari'a law" deserves praise on every front

This is an extremely valuable book...Knowing this stuff is important, and Kadri takes us through it wonderfully well. He has a great grasp of the facts and – this is my favourite thing – a good, dry sense of humour

Superb… So much discussion of sharia is marred by misinformation and paranoia: this level-headed book provides a timely corrective

A Journey Through Shari‘a Law

This book is important because it is: 
 
Unique. Heaven on Earth offers a critique of extremism that is human rights-based and entertaining – combining the comparative approach of Karen Armstrong and the immediacy of Ed Husain (The Islamist) with storytelling. 
 
Timely. At a time of veil bans, Qur’an burnings and English Defence League protests, Kadri voices a liberal view of Islamic history and shows Muslims working against repression. This book explains up-to-the-minute brutalities. 
 
Epic. Interviews, anecdotes, personal reflection and analysis are set against a narrative that sweeps from seventh-century Mecca to the war in Afghanistan. Civilisations are evoked via the vivid lives of caliphs, mystics, and travellers. Legal changes are described through the feuds, courtroom dramas, conquests and cataclysms that have left their mark on modern Islamic law. 
 
First-hand. On the road for five months, Kadri travelled through Iran just before the June 2009 election protests, and took part in a human rights conference there with ayatollahs and academics. 
 
Eye-opening. This book goes beyond the explosive headline issues (criminal justice, women, jihad, religious freedom) to reveal the stranger ones: genie exorcisms; the legal consequences of premature ejaculation; online fatwa advice; the sharia approach to Facebook and Qur’anic mobile phone ringtones, etc. 
 
Bold. Heaven on Earth primarily targets religious extremism, but also cuts anti-Muslim panic down to size.

Sadakat Kadri

Praise for Heaven on Earth

Brilliant and illuminating

Greatly enriches our understanding of a much misunderstood subject

Erudite and instructive

Brilliant and illuminating

Greatly enriches our understanding of a much misunderstood subject

Erudite and instructive

Brilliant and illuminating

Greatly enriches our understanding of a much misunderstood subject

Erudite and instructive

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