Modern scholars rely almost exclusively on the written record in reconstructing early Islamic legal thought, says Souaiaia (Islamic studies, U. of Iowa), and if they consider orality at all, it is as a passing stage in pre-literate, primitive culture. In contrast, he presents orality as a requite of the Islamic legal discourse without which the religion system could have lost its power and influence. He warns that readers who are not already familiar with Islamic law, and jurisprudence and the sources and theories he references, will have difficulty making sense of his argument. Annotation ©2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)