Islam and the Prophet: Is Islam a Religion of Peace? - Tapa blanda

With “Islam and the Prophet”, Benigno Nieto has ventured into inventing a colorful essay form, in which elements of story-telling garnish the methodical reflection on the subject matter in order to make a more enjoyable read. This little book—like Borges’s work, no less important for being brief—takes on a subject that is not only very topical but literally incendiary: Jihadist terrorism, its roots and its lethal consequences, including the mass flight of Muslims to European countries they are unable to adapt to. Nieto handles this thorniest of issues in the fairest and most objective way possible, providing information that spans the time of writing all the way back to the origins of Islam. This confers a scholarly dimension on the text which enhances it, especially when the author adds to that knowledge his own personal knowledge and expresses his opinions with the greatest clarity and bravery. Or when he humorously imagines a 21st century, the Prophet Muhammad running in sweat pants and turban, or makes his readers accomplice to anecdotes from the past with his Arab friends in Venezuela. Luis Agüero