War on Error: Real Stories of American Muslims

by Melody Moezzi

Book Overview

War on Error brings together the stories of twelve young people, all vastly different but all American, and all Muslim. Their approaches to religion couldn't be more diverse: from a rapper of Korean... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1557288550
• ISBN13: 9781557288554
• Release Date: October 2007
• Publisher: University of Arkansas Press
• Length: 150 Pages
• Weight: 0.73 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Clever Title, Captivating Read!

I'm generally wary of books dealing with religion as I find the writing too obtuse or the books themselves nothing more than thinly-veiled polemics. Yet I was drawn to Ms. Moezzi's book by the clever title and beautiful cover art and I'm glad I took the time to read it. War on Error is a collection of 12 interviews with a variety of Muslims - from the non-practicing "cultural" Muslim to the hijab-wearing convert. The premise is simple - Islam is not a monolith - but yet unfortunately it's one that garners very little attention. As a Muslim myself, it saddens me that there exists a vast majority of people that need Ms. Moezzi's book to realize what to me is self-evident : Muslim-Americans are just like any other Americans. We do not think uniformly, we have varied experiences, sometimes we are nothing if not banal but ultimately (like the reviewer below me pointed out) we all share the same essential humanity and wish to lead peaceful lives. Ms. Moezzi elucidates this idea beautifully in her book. Her writing draws you in immediately - it's clear, engaging, and often witty. War on Error was a pleasure to read and I cannot recommend this book enough.

Great Read!

This book is written by a courageous author with her own distinctive voice. It is unabashedly strong and assured as she unfolds a narrative of the lives of Muslims that are rarely ever told. Yet despite Moezzi's fiery commitment to her mission, she is also humble, quirky, funny, and endearingly flawed, making her storytelling more human and her dedication to activism more admirable. The stories she unravels so delicately all remain close to our hearts as the people she has interviewed each have unique stories of struggles, reconciliations, and battles. This book is a fantastic read and I can't recommend it enough.

A Breath of Fresh Air

I don't think I was able to breathe the whole time I read this book, which was okay, because I was able to read it all in almost just one sitting. The book was very involving and interesting, but I was nervous about reading another book claiming it was breaking stereotypes of American Muslims. Quite often, books of this sort only manage to hold onto the accepted "norm" of what both "typical" Muslims and non-Muslims think Islam should be and never begin to approach "outside of the box" writing. War on Error went inside, outside and around the proverbial box. Melody Moezzi takes the reader on an unapologetic journey into an amalgamation of individual Muslims' spiritual and personal journeys and the author's experiences with those individuals. The result easily moves into the readers' conscious and drives one to consider how each story connects to one's own reality. At the end, I kept having fantasies of War on Error as just Volume I of a series of profiles I could keep on reading for days. I expect this book to be just the beginning of a longer journey both for the author and the reader.

This one is for everyone

I can only speak for non-Muslims, but speak to you I will: you need to read this book. Although I like to keep abreast of current affairs, I tend to shy away from lengthy, dry nonfiction titles crammed with facts, which is why i loved this read. The premise of this book is simple: it is a series of short, biographical vignettes that showcase an incredibly diverse and interesting collection of Muslim-Americans. The purpose? The vignettes show us that the vast majority of Muslim-Americans are not terrorists but normal people, normal Americans, just like the vast majority of Christians are not snake-handlers (and I am not equating snake handlers to terrorists). The author does it, however, in a much more effective manner than the preaching I have seen before on this issue: through example, she shows us. She makes us feel. The purpose of the book is also to remind everyone that no matter what race, group, religion, gender, culture or ethnicity to which one belongs, we are all possessed of the same elemental humanity, and should be treated as such -- and should treat others as such. I can't say enough to recommend this book. The writing is simple yet elegant, easy to read yet resonant. It moved me. Read it.

Engaging & thought-provoking look at 'real' American Muslims!

This collection of 12 interviews w/ sane, normal, peace-loving, intelligent people illustrates the absurdity of blaming an entire faith for the fanaticism of a few terrorists! Melody Moezzi is a gifted young writer w/a lyrical touch - her summaries at the end of each interview are the highlights of the book. The variety of American Muslims she interviews serves to emphasize the diversity within Islam - Muslims are not a monolithic block of robots unthinkingly following the fatwas of a few extremists, nor are they content to sit silently on the sidelines as their faith is maligned or misunderstood. Melody has given a voice to the moderates within her own faith - great job! The American Muslim Teenager's Handbook is another contribution to this growing genre of literature by concerned American Muslims seeking to rescue their faith from extremism of any kind - more literature will lead to less fear.