If Oceans Were Ink - Carla Power - A Short Summary & Review
If Oceans Were Ink: An Unlikely Friendship and a Journey to the Heart of the Quran - Carla Power - A Short Summary & Review
By: a.d. elliott | Take the Back Roads - Art and Other Odd Adventures
A Rite of Fancy Book Recommendation and Review
A short summary:
If Oceans Were Ink by Carla Power chronicles a year of intensive study with the Islamic scholar Mohammad Akram Nadwi, offering a deeply personal exploration of Islam through lived relationship, textual study, and sustained dialogue.
Rather than presenting Islam through headlines or abstraction, Power approaches it through apprenticeship—learning directly from a scholar shaped by classical Islamic tradition. The book moves between theology, history, law, and daily practice, revealing the depth and internal diversity of Islamic thought while confronting common Western assumptions and misunderstandings.
My favorite quote from the book:
Questions to ponder while reading:
My review:
If Oceans Were Ink is an engaging and perception-changing work. Power’s strength lies in her willingness to remain a student, asking difficult questions, acknowledging discomfort, and allowing her understanding to be reshaped over time rather than resolved quickly.
The book offers a genuinely in-depth look at Islam, grounded not in argument but in attention. Power does not flatten differences between faith traditions, nor does she romanticize them. Instead, she invites readers into the discipline of listening, especially to voices that are often reduced or misrepresented in public discourse.
Thought-provoking and intellectually generous, this book challenges readers to reconsider what it means to know another faith tradition at all. If Oceans Were Ink ultimately becomes a meditation on study as an act of peace—demonstrating how sustained learning can undo fear, deepen empathy, and broaden the moral imagination.
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About the Author
a.d. elliott is a wanderer, photographer, and storyteller traveling through life
She shares her journeys at Take the Back Roads, explores new reads at Rite of Fancy, and highlights U.S. military biographies at Everyday Patriot.
You can also browse her online photography gallery at shop.takethebackroads.com.
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