Minarets in the Mountains: A Journey Into Muslim Europe (Bradt Travel Guides (Travel Literature))

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He visits historic Muslim towns in the mountains, long forgotten or barely known by most Muslims today. The juxtaposition between the proffering of money and the vendor’s refusal to take it really illustrated the heart of this book for me: travel is about experiencing different cultures, people and lifestyles; about finding oneself touched by small acts of kindness such as this. In all fairness, it left a big blur for me and I struggled to differentiate the countries based on their descriptions in this book.

As a result, when the power dynamic shifted, the narrative was controlled by the Christian West and changed to suit political aims. The book is dripping with not only history but also stunning vistas, architectural richness, exotic food, weird coffee rituals and all the diversity of humanity you could wish for. This is a wonderful and truly heartwarming travelogue by the creator of The Woking Trail and The Muslim Cemetery Walk, which is a Muslim herotage trail in the UK. The Bosnian war in the 1990’s and the subsequent ethnic cleansing of Bosnian Muslims by Serbian forces, saw the deaths of thousands of Bosnians- a truly immeasurable loss.

Tharik rightly points out that Islamophobia has been centuries in the making and as a result is quite solidified and canonised in Western psyche and culture. Bangladesh born Tharik grew up in 1980’s East London, where he faced his own challenges as an immigrant during a time in which racism and xenophobia was on the rise. Even if the West does not accept Muslims anytime soon, Tharik believes it is important for Muslims to at least know their own history. A deep dive into the historical roots of European Islamophobia, and the places where Muslim Europe still exists make this one of the most compelling books for readers who wish to see the world through a wider lens.

It’s an intense and through history book on the history of Islam in the Balkans as well as a travelogue of a family discovering their Muslim heritage in Western Europe.The author readily admits his task is to reveal that Islam is an under-appreciated component of European history and Muslims are not the "others" that segments of European politics suggest they are. The introductory notes highlight that words such as “Qur’an, Makkah and Madinah are spelt contrary to more common English literary convention” because the anglicised versions have been mispronounced. It presents a refreshing alternative take on the usual travel book and certainly opened my eyes to the Islamic influence on a part of Europe I have not visited. Tharik and his family learn lessons about themselves and their own identity as Britons, Europeans, and Muslims. So the focus is entirely on Islam, and the book effectively becomes a tour of the region’s mosques, with some Ottoman history interspersed.

In the unconscious of Western Europe there has always been a mistrust and a suspicion of eastern Europe,” he says. He also meets Muslim communities living in Bulgaria, Serbia, North Macedonia and Montenegro, places you would not normally link with Muslims. Tharik was the editor of this special one off ( FREE to download) 'resurrection' of the historic British Muslim journal and magazine, The Islamic Review, originally published from the Shah Jahan Mosque in Woking. Get caught up in Bangkok's energy, sample fresh local food in Chiang Mai, and relax in luxury on Ko Samui; all with your trusted travel companion.

Apart from his family, who travel with him, and a couple of Airbnb keyholders, he doesn’t talk to any women. A Europe that is home to an indigenous Muslim population, that is too often forgotten, or worse, deliberately ignored.

The imam chat briefly touches on honour killings (or an honour maiming in this case), but it’s made to sound like an anti-Muslim phenomenon; the example is of a non-Muslim father shooting his daughter for wanting to marry a Muslim.However, while the perception of Muslims may not change as quickly as he would like, it definitely had an immediate and lasting impact on him and his family. I am so impressed with a number of young people at the places the author visited who knew so much about the history of the places they live in especially regarding the mosques - the art, architecture, and the story behind them. The Best British Travel Writing of the 21st Century includes 30 outstanding travel stories published in British media over the last two decades, as chosen by some of the top names in travel writing today.