Silenced!
Posted on 19 August 2008 by Jack
NEW YORK — A racy, historical novel based on the Prophet Muhammad’s child bride A’isha was supposed to hit book stores in the U.S. Tuesday.
But in a rare case of self-censorship to preempt possible violent reaction by Muslims, one of the world’s largest publishing houses pulled the plug on the book just before its release date.
Sherry Jones, author of The Jewel of Medina, said she received word from Random House Inc. that the book’s release would be “postponed indefinitely.” The decision came after copies of her book were sent to stores, her book tour was scheduled and her work of fiction was accepted by the Book of the Month Club (it was scheduled to be in the August selection).
“My book is a respectful portrayal of Islam, of A’isha, of Muhammad. And anyone who reads it with [an] open mind will come away with an understanding of Islam as a peaceful religion,” said the American author.
Popularity: 12% [?]
August 19th, 2008 at 4:48 pm
The cowardly decision makers at Random House have forgotten this…then again how can you forget what you didn’t know.
“The Republic was not established by cowards; and cowards will not preserve it … This will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of brave.”
Elmer Davis
August 19th, 2008 at 6:54 pm
They’re scared and don’t want to become a target (which they will). I can understand that problem as I view their litiginous society. I think their law needs to be “adjusted” (as does ours).
August 19th, 2008 at 7:36 pm
Offical statement from Random House.
“After sending out advance editions of the novel THE JEWEL OF MEDINA, we received in response, from credible and unrelated sources, cautionary advice not only that the publication of this book might be offensive to some in the Muslim community, but also that it could incite acts of violence by a small, radical segment.
We felt an obligation to take these concerns very seriously. We consulted with security experts as well as with scholars of Islam, whom we asked to review the book and offer their assessments of potential reactions.
We stand firmly by our responsibility to support our authors and the free discussion of ideas, even those that may be construed as offensive by some. However, a publisher must weigh that responsibility against others that it also bears, and in this instance we decided, after much deliberation, to postpone publication for the safety of the author, employees of Random House, booksellers and anyone else who would be involved in distribution and sale of the novel. The author and Ballantine subsequently agreed to terminate the agreement, with the understanding that the author would be free to publish elsewhere, if she so chose.”
The Random House Publishing Group
August 19th, 2008 at 7:46 pm
“Well”…I guess freedom of speech just took a bath.
August 19th, 2008 at 10:11 pm
Yup.
August 20th, 2008 at 2:26 pm
A quote from Andrew Klavan at PajamasMedia, 12 August 2008
“The very need for such apologias and the very fear felt by Random House condemn the violent principles of the gangsters they’re appeasing. [Dan Brown’s novel] The Da Vinci Code spends its nearly five hundred pages trashing the central beliefs of the Christian community. But for all the hysteria in intellectual circles over fundamentalist Christians, no one had to cower before them or make mealy-mouthed excuses.”
http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/3466