Ayad Akhtar is the author of the novel
American Dervish. One of
three books on faith in the U.S. that he tagged for NPR:
Blue-Eyed Devil: A Road Odyssey Through Islamic America by Michael Muhammad Knight
People don't think of Islam as something native to American soil. But Blue-Eyed Devil reveals a more complex picture. In his second book — part memoir, part travelogue, part detective story — Michael Muhammad Knight, a white American convert to Islam at 16, scours the nation, first in his Buick Skylark and later in a Greyhound bus, trying to solve the mysterious disappearance of Fard Muhammad, the legendary founder of the Nation of Islam. In the process, Knight uncovers Islam's surprising, fascinating history in this country, and meets a bevy of nubile Muslim ladies along the way. At once gonzo journalist, punk poet and questing mystic, Knight's personal journey from Malcolm X's mosque in Harlem to a mysterious grave in Southern California is, after all is said and done, a heartfelt search for self.
Read about
a novel Akhtar selected for NPR.
Visit
Ayad Akhtar's website.
--Marshal Zeringue
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