About the Book Club

Wardah Books is hosting a regular book club called The Islamic Civilisation Book Club.

The book club aims to promote systematic, serious reading about Islamic Civilisation; and to introduce the scope and depth of Islamic Civilisation.

The book club is chaired by Dr Md Mubarak Habib Md. For some subjects and texts, there will be guest chairs. For participants in the book club, the pace of reading is one book in 3 weeks. The book club is open to everyone. The book club is not a class, it’s a purposeful conversation amongst readers who are all reading the same book. All books for the book club are available at Wardah Books.

If you want to stay up to date with the book club and receive reminders, you can join the book club's Whatsapp group (posts are only from admins).

Sessions

Pre-reading Session

The chair introduces the text, places the text within its field of study, introduces and explains key terms to look out for in the text, introduces the author, and provides guidance on reading the text. Participants will then proceed to read the book over the next 3 weeks or until the Post-reading Session.

Reading (three weeks)

Some pointers for active reading for book club:

1. Take notes.
2. Write questions or discussion points to raise later in the Post-reading Session.
3. Plan your time and read consistently. Complete the text before the start of the Post-reading Session.

Post-reading Session

The chair summarises the main ideas of the text and leads a discussion among participants.

Theme

For the year 2022, the theme of the book club is the Islamic Civilisation and the Modern World. This builds upon the theme for 2021, Islam and Other Civilisations.

For 2022, we will be looking at the following subjects: the European Enlightenment, Secularism, Colonialism, Worldviews, and Morality, and how these impact, entangle, disrupt, and create opportunities for Muslims today to clarify our purpose and role as Ummatun Wasata (a balanced community).

Click here to read the introduction to this year's theme. 

Online Zoom Sessions

Unless otherwise stated, all sessions are held on select Sundays at 10:30am (Singapore).

No registration required. Zoom links will be updated close to the session in our events page. 

Resources

Resources for the book club can be downloaded via this link. Resources will be uploaded as and when they are available. 

Subjects and Texts for 2022

0. Intention Setting

Overview of the themes and books for the Islamic Civilisation Book Club 2022.

Session: 26 Dec 2021 (Sunday) 10:30am

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1. The Enlightenment [Completed]

Man and Nature: The Spiritual Crisis in Modern Man
by Seyyid Hossein Nasr

Pre-Reading Session: 2 Jan 2022, Sunday,10:30am (with an introduction to the European Enlightenment)
Post-Reading Session: 13 Feb 2022, Sunday, 10:30am

Purchase book: Click here

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2. Secularism [Completed]

Islam and Secularism
by Syed Muhammad Naquib al-Attas

Pre-Reading Session: 20 Feb 2022, Sunday,10:30am

Post-Reading Session: 20 March 2022, Sunday, 10:30am

Purchase book: Click here

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3. Colonialism [Completed]

Colonialism in the Malay Archipelago: Civilisational Encounters
by Osman Bakar, Ahmad Murad Merican & Wan Ali Wan Mamat (Editors)

Pre-Reading Session: 27 March 2022, Sunday,10:30am

Post-Reading Session: 29 May 2022, Sunday, 10:30am

Purchase book: Click here

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4. Worldview [Completed]

Man and the Universe: An Islamic Perspective
by Mostafa Al-Badawi

Pre-Reading Session: 12 June 2022, Sunday,10:30am

Post-Reading Session: 14 August 2022, Sunday, 10:30am

Purchase book: Click here

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5. Morality in the 21st Century [Completed]

Morality: Restoring the Common Good in Divided Times
by Rabbi Jonathan Sacks

Pre-Reading Session: 28 August 2022, Sunday,10:30am
Post-Reading Session: 9 October 2022, Sunday, 10:30am

Purchase book: Click here

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6. Islam in the 21st Century [Completed]

Travelling Home: Essays on Islam in Europe
by Abdal Hakim Murad

Pre-Reading Session: Oct 16 2022, Sunday, 10:30 am Singapore
Post-Reading Session: Dec 4 2022, Sunday, 10:30 am Singapore

For those unable to attend in-store:
Zoom Link: Click here (Opens only during event)
Meeting ID: 861 0781 1514
Password: 177678

Purchase book: Click here

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