Discusses the history of the world from an Islamic perspective, explaining the evolution of the Muslim community while recounting the history of the Western world with respect to Islamic events and interpretations.

Includes appendix. Includes maps of: Islamic World Today; Growth of Islam; Mediterranean World Defined by Sea Routes; Middle World Defined by Land Routes; On the Eve of Islam - the Byzantine and Sassanid Empires; Imam Hussein's Route to Karbala; Umayyad Empire; Abu Muslim and the Abbasid Revolution; Three Khalifates; Seljuk Empire - the Turks Invade the Islamic World; Theater of the Crusades; Mongol Invasions of the Islamic World; Constantinople - the World's Most Impregnable City; Three Islamic Empires of the Seventeenth Century; European Quest for a Sea Route to the Indies; Western Imperialism - the Global Reach of Sea Power; Great Game; World War I and the Arab Revolt; Sykes-Picot Agreement; Division of the Arab World - the Mandates Plan; Israel and Palestine.

The middle world -- The hijra -- Birth of the khalifate -- The schism -- Empire of the Umayyads -- The Abassid age -- Scholars, philosophers, and sufis -- Enter the Turks -- Havoc -- Rebirth -- Meanwhile in Europe -- West comes East -- The reform movements -- Industry, constitutions, and nationalism -- Rise of the secular modernists -- The crisis of modernity -- The tide turns.