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Impossible Man
Recognized by readers of his novel, The Taqwacores, as the godfather of American Muslim punk, Michael Muhammad Knight is a voice for the growing number of teenagers who choose neither side of the “Clash of Civilizations.” Knight has now written his personal story, a chronicle of his bizarre and traumatic boyhood and his conversion to Islam during a turbulent adolescence.
Impossible Man follows a boy’s struggle in coming to terms with his father—a paranoid schizophrenic and white supremacist who had threatened to decapitate Michael when he was a baby—and his father’s place in his own identity. It is also the story of a teenager’s troubled path to maturity and the influences that steady him along the way. Knight’s encounter with Malcolm X’s autobiography transforms him from a disturbed teenager engaged in correspondence with Charles Manson to a zealous Muslim convert who travels to Pakistan and studies in a madrassa. Later disillusioned by radical religion, he again faces the crisis of self-definition.
For all its extremes, Impossible Man describes a universal journey: a wounded boy in search of a working model of manhood, going to outrageous lengths to find it.
Impossible Man follows a boy’s struggle in coming to terms with his father—a paranoid schizophrenic and white supremacist who had threatened to decapitate Michael when he was a baby—and his father’s place in his own identity. It is also the story of a teenager’s troubled path to maturity and the influences that steady him along the way. Knight’s encounter with Malcolm X’s autobiography transforms him from a disturbed teenager engaged in correspondence with Charles Manson to a zealous Muslim convert who travels to Pakistan and studies in a madrassa. Later disillusioned by radical religion, he again faces the crisis of self-definition.
For all its extremes, Impossible Man describes a universal journey: a wounded boy in search of a working model of manhood, going to outrageous lengths to find it.
346 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 2009
1 person is currently reading
91 people want to read
About the author
Michael Muhammad Knight
35 books146 followersMichael Muhammad Knight (born 1977) is an American novelist, essayist, and journalist. His writings are popular among American Muslim youth. The San Francisco Chronicle described him as "one of the most necessary and, paradoxically enough, hopeful writers of Barack Obama's America," while The Guardian has described him as "the Hunter S. Thompson of Islamic literature," and his non-fiction work exemplifies the principles of gonzo journalism. Publishers Weekly describes him as "Islam's gonzo experimentalist." Within the American Muslim community, he has earned a reputation as an ostentatious cultural provocateur.
He obtained a master's degree from Harvard University in 2011 and is a Ph.D. student in islamic studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
He obtained a master's degree from Harvard University in 2011 and is a Ph.D. student in islamic studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
June 7, 2009
the best islamic/wrestling/masturbation/punk scene/F. Scott Fitzgerald/mental illness/family history memoir i have ever read, hands down.
July 14, 2010
I picked this book up from the library with no prior knowledge of it, read the back, and checked it out in a hurry. Given how often I check books out and how few of them I end up finishing (I'm a dedicated reader but my brain is screwed up from channel surfing and the internet - a damaged product of the consumer/information age), it's a testament to how good this book is that I went cover to cover so quickly. The story behind the author seems a little far out: he's the son of a paranoid/schizophrenic white supremacist and ends up embracing Islam after reading the autobiography of Malcolm X while at Catholic School. He goes to Pakistan, comes back, has a crisis of faith, goes to college and starts staging backyard wrestling matches. As much as his life seems far removed from most people's experience (and admittedly part of why I picked this book up was the sensational nature of the story ), his struggles as a teenager and young adult for accomplishment, recognition and intellectual/spiritual substance weren't hard for me to relate to at all. By the end of the book I saw him as less of a fringe personality and more as someone forced to cope with some extraordinary difficulties while growing up and figuring out how to overcome them. He does a good job of explaining the appeal of Islam as a way of life as well as some of the difficulties he later has with it. I really liked this passage, written as a description of his mind state following September 11:
"One thing was for sure: I had no interest in questioning whether Islam was inherently a religion of peace or one of war, whether the terrorists had misappropriated an innocent faith or the liberal Muslims were only in denial of what Islam actually taught. I'd never claim to know what "true" Islam stood for; religions were too big to make it that simple, there was too much history and too many verses, and everyone just took the parts that they wanted anyway. For a prophet's message to become what they call a world religion, it'd have to be big enough to accommodate all kinds of personalities. Good ones, mean ones, greedy ones, kind ones, hard ones, soft ones, and they all own Islam as much as it owns them. The water has no shape; it's shaped by the bottle. I could see that as a Muslim, contrasting Qari Saheb's sweetness with that maniac Rushdie, and I even saw it with Catholics in Geneva, between sweet Gramps and that dickhead monsignor or Fat Ed."
For someone with an admittedly very limited knowledge of Islam, living in a country where there hostility and ignorance concerning Muslims are both widespread, I felt glad to discover this author who, with a foot in both cultures, is able to provide a unique perspective. Now I can't wait to find his other books!
"One thing was for sure: I had no interest in questioning whether Islam was inherently a religion of peace or one of war, whether the terrorists had misappropriated an innocent faith or the liberal Muslims were only in denial of what Islam actually taught. I'd never claim to know what "true" Islam stood for; religions were too big to make it that simple, there was too much history and too many verses, and everyone just took the parts that they wanted anyway. For a prophet's message to become what they call a world religion, it'd have to be big enough to accommodate all kinds of personalities. Good ones, mean ones, greedy ones, kind ones, hard ones, soft ones, and they all own Islam as much as it owns them. The water has no shape; it's shaped by the bottle. I could see that as a Muslim, contrasting Qari Saheb's sweetness with that maniac Rushdie, and I even saw it with Catholics in Geneva, between sweet Gramps and that dickhead monsignor or Fat Ed."
For someone with an admittedly very limited knowledge of Islam, living in a country where there hostility and ignorance concerning Muslims are both widespread, I felt glad to discover this author who, with a foot in both cultures, is able to provide a unique perspective. Now I can't wait to find his other books!
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July 28, 2024Required reading for all MMK scholars
Wonder if he’s ever read dworkin. She could’ve written about him in intercourse
Wonder if he’s ever read dworkin. She could’ve written about him in intercourse
June 5, 2022
I don't know what it would be like for someone to read this that was never Muslim.
But for me -same age as MMK, converted to Islam around the same time period- I found this a joy to read. I was nodding and laughing and cringing along while reading. The same books, movies and influences were at play in the pre-internet/early dial-up era that I found so much of this very relatable. I look forward to reading his other works.
"Everyone loves a dramatic conversion story. They want to hear how low you had fallen, what a sad and rotten scumbag you were until the Truth arrived and changed you forever. And if you lose your faith it's the same treatment: People take all of your doubts and disillusionment and compress it into one heartbreaking scene. First you are not, and then you are, or first you are and then you are not, and there can be no overlapping between the conditions. That's not how it worked for me. I stumbled around on both sides of the trip. For a long time after I was in, I wasn't really in;and even if I left at some point, I don't think that I've ever been really out."
But for me -same age as MMK, converted to Islam around the same time period- I found this a joy to read. I was nodding and laughing and cringing along while reading. The same books, movies and influences were at play in the pre-internet/early dial-up era that I found so much of this very relatable. I look forward to reading his other works.
"Everyone loves a dramatic conversion story. They want to hear how low you had fallen, what a sad and rotten scumbag you were until the Truth arrived and changed you forever. And if you lose your faith it's the same treatment: People take all of your doubts and disillusionment and compress it into one heartbreaking scene. First you are not, and then you are, or first you are and then you are not, and there can be no overlapping between the conditions. That's not how it worked for me. I stumbled around on both sides of the trip. For a long time after I was in, I wasn't really in;and even if I left at some point, I don't think that I've ever been really out."
February 2, 2025
Less entertaining than his other books. This one is structured less academically, is less mystical, and less gonzo journalism. Its more of a coming of age story. I couldn't really relate to the wrestling but he does attempt to make it engaging, even though I could've done without it. I was mostly interested in his experiences with Shia Islam, but that is towards the end of the book after he takes shahada and goes to Pakistan to study Sunni Islam and Faisal Mosque. There's quite a few sex scenes in this book, maybe it would've been better to tone it down. It would've been better as a conversion memoir I think, rather than going through the motions of highschool, wrestling, dates, schizophrenic father, etc.
November 20, 2020
This is a highly underrated modern American memoir - and MMK is generally an underrated thinker. Rags to riches in the most unpredictable way possible.
March 1, 2017
More than just a conversion memoir, this is in large part a story about the love and support Knight received from his mother on his journey with spirituality.
October 28, 2014
I picked this book out of curiosity from Abu Dhabi Book Fair, noticing the cover and the author name don't really quite fit.
This is the story of fifteen-year old Michael Unger who later became Michael Muhammad Knight after he converted to Islam. His journey was weird and bizarre, I guess it's not always sun and butterflies; being a Muslim in midst of everything is not, Kafr, temptations and allures to test your faith, so many sharee'a, conflicts, and sects. What made it worse for him is his hunger for knowledge beyond novice level. The first rule when preaching a non-Muslim is to break the rules for them gently, sadly he didn't. After Pakistan, everything went to the drain from his beliefs to career options. I almost felt sorry for the guy, but knowing he obtained a master's degree from Harvard and seeking a PhD in Islamic studies made me relieved.
I liked the reality of his autobiography, he didn't sugarcoat the struggles nor did he idolized himself just because God showed him the straight path and took it, while I don't agree on a lot of his actions through the book, who am I to judge him for them? It reminded me of a tumblr post saying "People will expose your faults and will never excuse you, but God will cover them and will forgive you too" .. he sinned but who haven't? we all sin in different ways only God knows and forgives.. I hope he will always be guided to the right path.
It took longer than I expected to finish it but it was worth the read.
This is the story of fifteen-year old Michael Unger who later became Michael Muhammad Knight after he converted to Islam. His journey was weird and bizarre, I guess it's not always sun and butterflies; being a Muslim in midst of everything is not, Kafr, temptations and allures to test your faith, so many sharee'a, conflicts, and sects. What made it worse for him is his hunger for knowledge beyond novice level. The first rule when preaching a non-Muslim is to break the rules for them gently, sadly he didn't. After Pakistan, everything went to the drain from his beliefs to career options. I almost felt sorry for the guy, but knowing he obtained a master's degree from Harvard and seeking a PhD in Islamic studies made me relieved.
I liked the reality of his autobiography, he didn't sugarcoat the struggles nor did he idolized himself just because God showed him the straight path and took it, while I don't agree on a lot of his actions through the book, who am I to judge him for them? It reminded me of a tumblr post saying "People will expose your faults and will never excuse you, but God will cover them and will forgive you too" .. he sinned but who haven't? we all sin in different ways only God knows and forgives.. I hope he will always be guided to the right path.
It took longer than I expected to finish it but it was worth the read.
June 29, 2016
Se siete arrivati a M. M. Knight tramite Islampunk, forse questo libro vi stupirà. Tre quarti di narrazione sono assorbiti dalla discesa del giovane Michael, alla disperata ricerca di un senso di appartenenza, prima nell'Islam ortodosso e poi nella cazzoneria da campus scolastico, dopo lo sconvolgente inizio sull'infanzia con un padre psicotico.
Un percorso di formazione che si rende conto lui stesso essere costellato di misoginia e rabbia, a tratti toccante, molto spesso anche irritante come può esserlo solo il fervore religioso di un adolescente convertito che prende tutto drammaticamente sul serio, non senza il contributo di chi vuole elevarlo a ragazzo-immagine per la propria comunità. Come lettrice avrei voluto un po' meno fanatici e un po' più scena punk, meno spazio alle tronfie considerazioni su chi merita l'inferno e chi il paradiso per saperne di più sulla ragazza bisessuale afghana con i capelli rosa e il piercing che riporta la sua musulmanità a un livello più umano.
Un percorso di formazione che si rende conto lui stesso essere costellato di misoginia e rabbia, a tratti toccante, molto spesso anche irritante come può esserlo solo il fervore religioso di un adolescente convertito che prende tutto drammaticamente sul serio, non senza il contributo di chi vuole elevarlo a ragazzo-immagine per la propria comunità. Come lettrice avrei voluto un po' meno fanatici e un po' più scena punk, meno spazio alle tronfie considerazioni su chi merita l'inferno e chi il paradiso per saperne di più sulla ragazza bisessuale afghana con i capelli rosa e il piercing che riporta la sua musulmanità a un livello più umano.
October 18, 2010
This book is a beautiful, intense read from a young man who found Islam during his confused adolescence. Knight spares us no details of his his trailer park youth, his initially rigid view of Islam and the West and his evolution as a white, Midwestern convert with a deep and sincere passion for a religion not often understood in the U.S.
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July 29, 2011What makes a man? It's one of those age old questions that Knight really nails as he outlines his journey from misfit, to Islam, to wrestling and back again, finding a measure of spiritual comfort in each. It's a quick read and really a superb look at the maturation of an individual looking for inner peace via a multitude of identities. Interesting stuff and well worth the read.
August 7, 2013
The book left me feeling extremely drained due to it's intense storyline. The main character has some serious personal issues to overcome and I never could empathize or feel drawn into the story, just rather exhausted. I could only read a few chapters at a time. It is not what I would term an easy read, but it is well written.
January 10, 2010
Fasinating memoir. Michael is clearly a brilliant diamond in the rough. While searching for himself, he takes us on a wild ride through vast landscapes of Islam, West Virginia, Pakistan, and punk attitude.
October 3, 2011
A lot of wrestling stuff that I personally feel (as a reader) distracts the writer (and hence, the reader) from the author's own story. It seems like there are crucial parts of the story missing here (as was the same with Eteraz's memoir). The ending is lovely.
May 11, 2009
Catch my review here: http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-83...
January 13, 2010
father son memoir that has an interesting beginning/middle
March 28, 2013
A 7 Story Mountain for this generation
March 29, 2023
I'm not a memoir guy but this is a pretty killer memoir. Weird and fun read, not gonna stick with me, but enjoyable and easy to read.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews