News

Today, April 16, Light without Fire will appear on the shelves of stores, in the warehouses of on-line distrubutors, and in e-catalogues ready for download to e-readers. I hope you will find a copy for yourself.If you're in New York City, I'll be presenting the book publicly for the first time, in conversation with Imam Khalid Latif, at the NYU Bookstore.NYU BOOKSTORE726 Broadway | NYCThe event begins at 6p.

Today, Guernica runs the first magazine excerpt from Light without Fire, under the title "A Lesson in Daily Longing."All around were young people focused on the physical requirements of water and food and rest. And yet, here was Zaid, asking them not to be so focused.

New York Times religion columnist Mark Oppenheimer reports on Zaytuna College in this weekend's paper.Scott Korb, author of "Light without Fire," a new book about Zaytuna, said in an e-mail that he sees no ambivalence about Zaytuna's mission, to foster an American Islam. "The message from the founders is clear: America is home," he wrote. "Now this hasn't been a universal among every Muslim community I've encountered. But at Zaytuna it seems to be."Read the story here.

In a pre-publication interview with Religion Dispatches, I answered some questions about what inspired the book, who I wrote it for, and who I think it might piss off. Read the Q&A, "Islam, Essential to America?," here.

Now available on Scribd, an excerpt from of Light without Fire.

Slate Book Review has my essay about NYU President John Sexton's Baseball as a Road to God. Our long winter is nearly done. We've all got a lot to look forward to. So live slow. Because it will all, all of it, go by so, so fast.

Events marking the publication of the new book, Light without Fire, are coming up. The first will have me in conversation with Imam Khalid Latif, executive director of the Islamic Center at NYU and chaplain of the NYPD.Join us at the NYU Bookstore for the release of the book on Tuesday, April 16, at 6p.Q. & A. and a signing to follow.More details on Facebook | 726 Broadway | NYC

This isn't new news, but in light of the week ahead, which contains both Passover and Easter, I thought I would look back a couple years to the release of Life in Year One: What the World Was Like in First-Century Palestine.Here's my appearance on NPR's Talk of the Nation.

Publishers Weekly has come out with a thoughtful and generous review of Light without Fire."The idea behind Zaytuna is to provide a place for integrating Islam and the West, and to cultivate a generation of truly American Muslim scholars. Korb's account delves deeply into these ideas, also exploring the daily life and religious practices of Muslims, as well as the religious philosophies and backgrounds of Zaytuna's founders, all of them prominent Muslim thinkers, clerics, and writers. ... [R]eaders interested in Islam in America or the dynamics of Islamic education will find the book fascinating."Read the full review here.

The wonderful LA Review of Books asked some questions about me, and I answered them. Read that back and forth here. It's a little strange.And while you're there, why not look for my review of the wonderful Reinventing Bach, by Paul Elie?

I'm excited to announce that Goodreads is hosting a giveaway of the new book, Light without Fire: The Making of America's First Muslim College. There are twenty copies available.Enter now for your chance to win an advance copy.