I've seen a mention or two of Lord of the Flies and Down and Out in Paris and London. Both are excellent books.
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LOL you're really into this stuff aren't you? I don't know why you don't just read the friggin' books yourself!
I've been meaning to start a thread in which I post the interesting shit I find while going through these Islamic books. Haven't really had a lot of free time yet what with uni and stuff though. But I should get round to it eventually. I've made a load of notes on Tafsir Ibn Kathir and Jalalayn too.
I'm only half way through the first volume of Ma'ariful Quran, I haven't really had a lot of time to read it. Nevertheless, I've made a couple of pages of notes on it already. Here's a few things I found interesting:
It is quite permissible to for one to seek the help of a prophet or saint by asking him to pray to Allah on one's behalf, or to mention, while praying directly to Allah, the name of a prophet or saint by way of a medium (wasilah) for drawing divine mercy upon oneself. Explicit traditions (ahadith) and implicit indications in the Holy Qur'an fully justify this practice, and it would be wrong to condemn it as forbidden or to include it among the various forms of association (shirk). -- p. 88
The Ummah as a collective body has been declared to be innocent and under the special protection of Allah himself, so that it will never unanimously agree upon a doctrinal error or a deviation, and hence any decision that has been arrived at in religious matters through the consensus of the Ummah is to be regarded as a manifestation of Divine Commandment. That is why the consensus of the Ummah has been regarded as the third source of the Shari'ah, the first two being the Qur'an and Hadith. For the Holy Prophet himself said "My Ummah shall never collectively agree upon error." -- p. 167
(Talking about the Rightly-Guided Caliphs)
Their decisions are not merely temporary judgements, but have a permanent legislative value, and carry an authority in their own degree, for the Holy Prophet has said "Follow my way steadfastly, and the way of the Rightly-Guided Caliphs." -- p. 168
The third rule we find out is that answers to religious questions which are intricate, deeply involved and way beyond the comprehension level of of common people should not be offered before them lest they fall prey to some misunderstanding.
As reported in Sahih al-Bukhari, Sayyidna Ali has stated "Disclose to the common people only so much knowledge as they have the capacity to understand. Do you want them to disobey Allah and His Messenger?" Anything beyond their comprehension would breed doubts in their minds and the possibility is there that they may refuse to accept it.
This leads us to the rule that it is the responsibility of the 'alim, or religious scholar, to talk to people after he has assessed their ability to receive what is to be communicated. Such questions should not be brought up before a person who is likely to fall into error or misunderstanding. It is for this reason that Muslim jurists, while discussing such questions in writing, conclude with a standard warning tag of (some Arabic phrase) which means that the question under discussion is sensitive, therefore, a scholar should limit it to his comprehension and refrain from broadcasting it in public. -- p. 411
There's loads of stuff in it. He also talks about the etymology of Qur'anic terms and names, which is interesting. And perhaps surprisingly he frequently speaks well of the Sufis.
Oh, and this last one is quite amusing:
In a country where dawn follows immediately after maghrib, there the Salah of 'Isha will just not be obligatory. This makes it necessary that in an area where the day lasts for six months, people will only have to observe five Salahs in six months and, for that matter, they will witness no Ramadan coming there, therefore, fasting will not be obligatory for them. Maulana Ashraf Ali Thanavi has, in Imdad al-Fatawa, taken this very position. -- p. 462
Topic: What book are you reading?