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US Publisher Yanks Novel on Mohammed

Random House feared violence over work on prophet's child bride

By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff

Posted Aug 8, 2008 3:25 AM CDT

(Newser) – Random House has pulled a book about the life of Mohammed due to be published this week, Reuters reports. The company feared that The Jewel of  Medina, a historical novel and love story about Mohammed and Aisha—a child bride who was engaged to the prophet when she was 6—might rile Islamic radicals and endanger the lives of employees.

"I have deliberately and consciously written respectfully about Islam and Mohammed. I envisioned that my book would be a bridge-builder," said the dismayed author. "They had a great love story. He died with his head on her breast."  The company said it received "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."

Tourists visit the Prophet Mohammed mosque in Medina. A novel telling the love story of Mohammed and his young wife in ancient Medina has had its publication canceled.
Tourists visit the Prophet Mohammed mosque in Medina. A novel telling the love story of Mohammed and his young wife in ancient Medina has had its publication canceled.   (Getty Images)
The partial solar eclipse is seen against a crescent of Islamabad's grand Faisal mosque in Pakistan on Aug 1, 2008.
The partial solar eclipse is seen against a crescent of Islamabad's grand Faisal mosque in Pakistan on Aug 1, 2008.   (AP Photo/B.K.Bangash)
Pakistanis protest of a cartoon depicting the Prophet Mohammed in Danish newspapers. Random House feared that a novel telling a love story involving Mohammed could have sparked violent protests.
Pakistanis protest of a cartoon depicting the Prophet Mohammed in Danish newspapers. Random House feared that a novel telling a love story involving Mohammed could have sparked violent protests.   (AP Photo/Aftab Rizvi)
A man holds a copy of the Koran as he searches through a library.
A man holds a copy of the Koran as he searches through a library.   (Getty Images)
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