An Introduction to Islamic Economics

Abstract

It is perhaps desirable to preface the review of a book with a brief description of its form and content, more so in the area of Islamic economics, where formal writing structures have yet to evolve and much diverse material tends to be treated under similar, even misleading, titles. Akram's book opens with an erudite foreword by Khurshid Ahmad. The text contains six chapters of uneven length spread over 111 pages. Two appendices, notes and references, a select bibliography to help further research, and a couple of indexes constitute its remaining portion. The Introduction is a neat, petite work. Simple language, a lucid style, an uncompromising stance, and reHance on original sources are some of its notable features. It has not a few seminal ideas and some outlandish ones as well. The vast coverage inevitably is at some expense of depth and detail. Chapter 1 provides a broad picture of Islamic economics for those who may not have the time to read the entire book (p. xii). It is a potpourri of ideas concerning such varied topics as the Islamic worldview, basic assumptions of the discipline, economic organization, the role of money, the problem of poverty, fiscal management, and the sharing of knowledge. Understandably, positions are taken without much argument to support them ...