Following the September 11th attacks, war was waged, not against a country, but against a nascent ideology. America went on high alert and proclaimed Islamic fundamentalists to be its enemy. Muslims worldwide became the suspects of terrorist activity as the West sought individuals who were possibly associated with acts of terror.

Faith at War by author Yaroslav Trofimov “is not an attempt to find a solution or to critique specific policies, decisions, and concepts. Based on three years of travels in Muslim countries that the West is trying to revamp by persuasion or force, it is a personal account of what’s happening on the ground and of the way Muslims themselves are reacting to changes imposed on them.” Trofimov travels to the most dreaded places to reveal the truth about the Islamic faith.

As the War on Terror becomes unmanageable, Trofimov reminds us that we must take a step back to view the globe ─ its countries and its individuals. In an interview, one Bosnian Muslim tells the author, “Look at the world ─ Afghanistan, Chechnya, Palestine, Kashmir, the Philippines. In every place that has a war, the war is against Muslims.”

Faith at War proves that Islam is not the enemy. Trofimov takes the reader to Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Yemen, Iraq, and Near Eastern Afghanistan where tensions against the West are high. He travels to a modernizing Tunisia and peaceful third world Mali in Africa where Islam is practiced. He concludes with interviews in Bosnia where Islamic Europeans have not been excluded from the war against terrorism.

Trofimov is not silent and presents facts that will stun any reader. Faith at War is a must-read. It is more than capable of making anyone look at the War on Terror from a different perspective.