Sarah Conover writes in the "Author's Note" for this book: "I wrote Muhammad: The Story of a Prophet and Reformer because there are few book that place us in Muhammad's times, help us feel both the beauty and perils of desert life, or give us a sense of the tribal traditions that his Prophethood overturned. What was his life like as a child, as a teen, and beyond? How did being orphaned a number of times shape his world? Who and what helped to form his good character?" Her 104-page narrative covers Muhammad's life up until the year 622 when he makes the journey from Mecca to Medina. All quotations and sayings of the Prophet here are authentic, either directly from the Holy Quran or the hadith.
The narrative begins with Aminah, his mother, who finds him a good home. We learn of the Muhammad's respect for his uncle, Abu Talib, and the journey to Syria where he meets with Bahirah the Monk, who realizes he is the Prophet. Muhammad's wife narrates his encounter with the Angel Gabriel and the start of the revelation of the Quran.
It is very gratifying to read this: "Muhammad taught that all people wealthy or poor, were equal before God, 'as equal as the teeth of a comb,' he said, and the rich had a duty to share their wealth with the poor. A revelation that would further upset the powerful stated that the oppressed must be freed: Women were men's partners, not property; infant girls must not be killed; slaves must be able to earn their freedom."
We highly recommend this portrait of Muhammad, written for young people but equally good reading for adults. It both humanizes him and shows him as a Divinely led person.
