The Muslim discovery of Europe

Turning the traditional focus of western scholarship on its head, Professor Bernard Lewis, one of the world’s foremost experts on Islamic history, examines the sources and nature of Muslim knowledge of the West. His lively book explores the subtle ways in which Europe and Islam have influenced each other over many centuries, retelling familiar historical events such as the battle of Tours, the Crusades, the battle of Lepanto, and the Siege of Vienna from a Muslim perspective. Quoting from Islamic writers and scholars, he recounts their reactions to the West, their impressions of western gardens, paintings, parliaments, hygiene, manners and even the necklines of western women.