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Beyond Belief: Islamic Excursions Among the Converted Peoples
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 297.095
EAN: 9780375706486
ISBN: 0375706488
Label: Vintage
Manufacturer: Vintage
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 432
Publication Date: December 07, 1999
Publisher: Vintage
Release Date: December 07, 1999
Studio: Vintage
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Editorial Review:
Acclaimed writer V.S. Naipaul has the eye of a novelist, the fearless curiosity of a 2-year-old, and the tenacity of a cornered badger. In Beyond Belief, he puts these three attributes to use in delving into the secrets of Islam--the other Islam, that is. Journeying into the non-Arab Islamic countries of Indonesia, Iran, Pakistan, and Malaysia, Naipaul wonders about how these young nations are absorbing a resurgent Islam into their ancient societies and where it might lead them. His exploration is at the grassroots level, through the people living and breathing Islam today. Naipaul illustrates his points with vignettes about characters he meets, by both happenstance and calculation, along the way. We learn about their histories, their families' histories, their motivations, and their dreams. The mosaic that materializes is not always appealing, for Naipaul is a sensitive but disinterested observer, more a watcher than a champion. Islam, we learn, is a font of hope for the converted peoples, sweet when taken in gulps but often bearing an acrid aftertaste. It buries traditional cultures under promising new foundations, indirectly encourages broken families through polygamy, and turns only tentatively to face the issues of modernity. From beginning to end, we find ourselves empathizing with Naipaul's subjects, seeing ourselves in their struggles with family, religion, and nation, feeling their drive to create a fresh world of virtue and prosperity. --Brian Bruya
"Brilliant. . . . A powerfully observed, stylistically elegant exploration." --The New York TimesA New York Times Notable Book of the Year"The book's strength lies in Naipaul's extraordinary ability as a storyteller to draw striking portraits of a cross section of individuals."--The Boston GlobeFourteen years after the publication of his landmark travel narrative Among the Believers, V. S. Naipaul returned to the four non-Arab Islamic countries he reported on so vividly at the time of Ayatollah Khomeini's triumph in Iran. Beyond Belief is the result of his five-month journey in 1995 through Indonesia, Iran, Pakistan, and Malaysia--lands where descendants of Muslim converts live at odds with indigenous traditions, and where dreams of Islamic purity clash with economic and political realities.In extended conversations with a vast number of people--a rare survivor of the martyr brigades of the Iran-Iraq war, a young intellectual training as a Marxist guerilla in Baluchistan, an impoverished elderly couple in Teheran whose dusty Baccarat chandeliers preserve the memory of vanished wealth, and countless others--V. S. Naipaul deliberately effaces himself to let the voices of his subjects come through. Yet the result is a collection of stories that has the author's unmistakable stamp. With its incisive observation and brilliant cultural analysis, Beyond Belief is a startling and revelatory addition to the Naipaul canon."Highly accomplished. . . . Another display of Naipaul's remarkable talent." --The Independent (London)
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Excellent
I noticed that the one-star reviews are by written by Muslims, meaning the book must be incisive and accurate. I'm buying it. If you think that this not a real review; well, I felt that I needed to balance the equally vapid one-star reviews.
Rating:  - Beyond Mere Travel Writing
Here, the great traveler and cultural observer V.S. Naipaul travels to lands in which non-Arab peoples were historically converted to Islam. This offers many insights into how adherents see their faith and their place in the larger Islamic order. Naipaul's modus operandi is to dispense with predictable travel writing based on scenery and touring, and to illuminate the lands visited by telling the stories of the ordinary people met along the way. This method gives us intriguing looks at Indonesia, ... Read More
Rating: - Beyond Belief by V.S. Naipaul
In my point of view, this book is a Classic.
First because its prose, its writing quality. Naipaul is a great writer, a master who can describe richly what he sees, what he thinks and what he experiences - as few writers could. He moves quickly from a single detail of daily life to a big panorama of history. He can be subtle, and he is also sharp. Several times he is ironical, and most of all his writing is fluid and simple, unregarding the complexity of his themes.
A second ... Read More
Rating:  - Flawed but colorful
V.S. Naipaul's personality portraits in Beyond Belief are not overtly discriminatory as some reviewers have claimed, but a subtle hubris and xenophobia does creep into the text. When I first began reading Beyond Belief I couldn't help but wonder if Naipaul's Indian/British heritage would factor into his assessments and character profiles. To be sure it does, but I believe Naipaul's literary talents and gift as an observer somewhat compensate for his flare-ups of bias. That said, the faults of Beyond ... Read More
Rating: - Worth a read
I will break the mold and give this book 2.5 stars! I read Beyond Belief two years ago, and recently, I read two of Naipaul's other books, Among the Believers and India: A Wounded Civilization. When I read Beyond Belief, I was very impressed with it. It seemed an original way to observe everyday people and, through them, learn about and analyze their culture. The book is not an easy read, as none of Naipaul's books are. But it has a captivating narrative.
However, more recently, I picked up the ... Read More
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