Khaled DiabThe idea has been brewing in the back of mind for some time. For years, I have been writing articles tackling and challenging the mutual misconception…moreThe idea has been brewing in the back of mind for some time. For years, I have been writing articles tackling and challenging the mutual misconceptions, half truths and outright myths held by many in the West and in Muslim societies towards one another. However, the space afforded to me as a journalist in the medium of articles was inadequate to deal with the magnitude of the challenge. As I watched with alarm the rise in radical intolerance on all sides, I resolved that the only solution was to delve deeper and write a book dealing uncompromisingly with these issues, and to do so from my rather unique perspective as someone who has lived on both sides of the perceived divide and who was raised a Muslim against a Christian backdrop but decided that religion was not for me. I am under no illusions that this book will make a difference, in these polarised, troubling times. But if it gives some readers pause for reflection and helps them become more appreciative of the complexity and nuance of the situation, then I will feel that my endeavour was worthwhile.(less)