Summary

Muslim Diaspora identifies those aspects of migratory experience that shatter or reinforce a group's attachment to its homeland and affect its readiness to adapt to a new country.

The contributors to this collection examine many dimensions of life in the Diaspora and demonstrate that identity is always constructed in relation to others. They show how religious identity in diaspora is mediated by many other factors such as:

A central aim is to understand Diaspora as an agent of social and cultural change, particularly in its transformative impact on women. Throughout, the book advances a more nuanced understanding of the notions of ethnicity, difference and rights. It makes an important contribution to understanding the complex processes of formation and adoption of transnational identities and the challenging contradictions of a world that is being rapidly globalized in economic and political terms, and yet is increasingly localized and differentiated, ethically and culturally.

Muslim Diaspora includes contributions from outstanding scholars and is an invaluable text for students in sociology, anthropology, geography, cultural studies, Islamic studies, women's studies as well as the general reader.

Choice Review

This edited collection addresses a number of themes in the study of the Muslim diaspora, which is increasingly under scrutiny by both laypeople and academics. Contributors discuss the experiences of Muslims from a variety of Islamic homelands in Europe, the US, and Canada; examine perspectives on diaspora from within Islamic settings, particularly Iran; and discuss the theoretical concept of "diaspora" and its history. Chapters in parts one, two, and three hang together somewhat loosely and vary in quality. The essays pay sufficient attention to issues of gender, but less to race and class. In particular, the volume is to be noted for its serious examination of the issues relating to the tensions between diasporas and homelands, highlighting the fact that they exist along a continuum of relationship for those who negotiate between them. Overall, the volume is an important contribution to the study of the Islamic diasporas and the theoretical issues underpinning their analyses. ^BSumming Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. C. E. Rothenberg McMaster University