Moving Forward

Muslimfest last week was an interesting experience. Overall, the event was very well attended, but the turnout for the Writers Expo was somewhat disappointing, possibly because it was situated in a location off the beaten track. Sales of books for the participating authors were very low, but I was pleased to make a number of new contacts and get some exposure for myself and my book.
One of the questions that I received from a number of people was, "What's next?" Well, another book on the Qur'an is the answer.
Tentatively entitled The Women: A Contemporary Exegesis, I intend to use a systematic exploration of the fourth surah of the Qur'an as a means to discuss the themes of wife beating, inheritance, murder and hypocrites. These are all sensitive and timely topics that receive a great deal of attention in the media and have a long history of doctrinal and cultural development. Unlike Reading the Qur'an in English, The Women will be directed towards those readers who are fairly well acquainted with the contents of the Qur'an and who have some familiarity with the hadith literature, shariah, and contemporary debates over women's rights in Islam, and human rights more generally.
On a more selfish note, I am pleased to see that sales of Reading the Qur'an in English are growing steadily, and copies are now available at the libraries of Harvard, Columbia and several other universities in North America.