Christmann (contemporary Islam, U. of Manchester, Britain) has selected, translated, heavily annotated, and assembled texts from the five books on the Qur'an and Islam in the modern world that Sharur (emeritus civil engineering, U. of Damascus) has written over the past two decades. The books have been very influential throughout the Middle East and elsewhere among Arabic readers, he says, and the ideas they express should be be accessible to English readers as well. The topics are al-Islam and al-Iman, the sunna of the Prophet, revelation, the theory of limits, women and Islamic law, and political Islam. Shuhrur himself introduces the collection, and two interviews with him are included, along with a glossary of terms and concepts, and an editorial introduction to his life and writings. Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)