David Pinault Boeken

This book on Islam has an unusual perspective. It argues that a critically minded examination of Islam can help Christians achieve a deeper appreciation of the unique truths of their own faith. It draws on the author's personal experiences living in Islamic countries and his fieldwork with persecuted Christian-minority communities, especially in Pakistan, Yemen, Egypt, and Indonesia. It includes the author's own original translations of Islamic texts in Arabic, Persian, and Urdu, as well as primary-source materials in Latin that were written by Christian participants in the Crusades

At his typewriter in little Cross Plains, Texas, Robert E. Howard created big characters--Bran Mak Morn, Solomon Kane, Conan the Barbarian--who shaped the art of fantasy fiction for generations. But Howard would never know it. On June 11, 1936, at the age of thirty, he shot himself outside his country home. Why would he do it, and where could death have taken him? Providence Blue imagines the strange underworld journey of Howard after his suicide, through Texas flatlands, ancient Egyptian ruins, and New England city gutters. Meanwhile, as his girlfriend Novalyne Price investigates what caused the tragedy, she is led to Providence, Rhode Island, home of the horror writer H. P. Lovecraft, where she makes a terrifying, life-changing discovery. In Providence decades later, aging grad student Joseph Bonaventure struggles to finish his dissertation on Lovecraft. When he and a young librarian, Fay O'Connell, chance upon some of the author's lost papers, this breakthrough locks both of them in a web of black magic, occult conspiracy, and dark cosmic forces--and ties them intimately to the fate of Robert E. Howard. Alongside a cast of Providence characters, including a local priest and a stray Chihuahua, Joseph and Fay join a supernatural quest for good against evil, heaven against hell, the Lamb of God against the horrors of oblivion

The exploration of Pakistan's diverse religious practices reveals unique cultural phenomena, including Shia flagellation, Urdu pulp fiction, and rituals involving animals. The narrative highlights the tension between Islamist politicians aiming to impose a uniform Islamic identity and the rich tapestry of local traditions. It also showcases resistance efforts by interfaith activists, including Christians, Hindus, and Muslims, who challenge oppressive laws like the blasphemy law and advocate for religious pluralism, emphasizing the importance of diversity in the face of globalization.