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Navid Kermani – author, journalist and academic – is one of the most prominent public intellectuals in Germany today. Kermani has been at the forefront of recent debates about Islam and its role in Germany’s political, social and cultural life. Instead of emphasizing the differences between ethnic affiliations and religious beliefs, Kermani questions the Western notion of a clear dividing line between Islam, Christianity and Judaism, highlighting instead their affinities. In addition to his political essays, Kermani’s travel journalism introduces western audiences to diverse Muslim societies in the world and his fiction provides accessible meditations on first love, contemporary music, death and friendship. This is the first volume of criticism in English dedicated to Kermani’s varied work. The book features an extensive interview with the author, a reproduction in German and English of Kermani’s famous 2014 Bundestag speech and a collection of critical essays on Kermani’s writing. The essays, by major scholars in the field, cover issues such as gender, religion, cosmopolitanism, mystical experiences, and the power of the liberal arts in a time of neoliberal distraction. «In sum, this volume offers an engaging, thoughtful, and most timely discussion of Kermani’s ideas and contributions.»(Monika Shafi, Monatshefte Vol. 109, No. 3, 2017)«On the whole, Navid Kermani is an excellent and timely introduction to the varied work of one of the most important political voices from Germany today. It can serve as an entry-point to Kermani’s work for scholars interested in cosmopolitanism/post-nationalism, music, interreligious dialogue, political travelogues, and gender. For those interested in gender studies, Helga Druxes’s chapter stands out and is a compelling, seminal close reading of neoliberalism and reproductivity in one of Kermani’s novels. Each chapter can also be a valuable secondary resource for undergraduate and graduate courses that include the discussion of specific texts by Kermani.»(Nicole Coleman, Women in German Newsletter 128/2017)...
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