This book discusses three holy cities: Jerusalem, Mecca, and Medina. This is a compelling read for those unfamiliar with how these cities evolved. I lived in Saudi Arabia for a time but did not know the early Muslim history and how it affected these three cities. Medina had water and produced foodstuffs for the area, while Mecca did not have much water and grew as a place to pay homage to Allah. Mecca has always been considered a holy city; it is still forbidden for non-Muslims to enter Mecca. All three faiths (Christians, Jews, and Muslims) consider Jerusalem a holy city.

It was interesting to learn that Medina was the organizational center of the Muslims while Muhammed was alive. However, after his death, various Caliphs moved the business center of the Muslim faith to Cairo, Damascus, Baghdad, and others.

It is interesting to note that there were Jews in the lands that would eventually become Saudi Arabia. They moved there to avoid persecution by the Babylonians and Romans. Muhammed told his followers to leave them alone (along with the Christians) because they were "People of the Book." (the Bible)

Until reading this book, I was unaware that Muslims prayed towards Jerusalem before the policy changed to pray towards Mecca. This was an unbalanced story; parts were fascinating, and others were uninteresting.

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