Review in The Khaleej Times

A terrific review in the Khaleej Times out of Dubai. Read the entire review by Asif Ismail here.

A snippet of the review is below:

Even though the American odyssey was undertaken “to learn about Islam in America,” Ahmed says he found he could not “do so without learning the American identity.” Early on, the professor and his fellow travelers discovered a key reality: that people had different ideas about “what it means to be American” or “who can be an American?” Their experiences at each destination — be it Plymouth in Massachusetts, the place where the pilgrims established the first settlement; Las Vegas and New Orleans, the cities known for casinos and carnival; or Dearborn in Michigan, home to the largest Muslim community in the United States — would underline the same.

Along the way, the group also traced the roots of Islam in America. On Sapelo Island, off the coast of Georgia, they meet a descendant of an African slave brought to the country in the 19^th century, who tells them about the fascinating remnants of Islam still visible on the island (such as churches facing east to Makkah). In Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in the American heartland, they visit the oldest mosque in America.

The film reveals that America is not a monolithic entity many flag-waving Americans want the country to be and many of its critics in the Muslim world project it to be. Over centuries, America has provided rich materials to many discerning voyagers. From Alex de Tocqueville in the early 19^th century to Sacha Baron Cohen in our own era, a bevy of writers, thinkers and artists from overseas have left us many brilliant imprints of the land, and its people, culture and social systems that range from the classic to the comedic.