A Review of Terrorist by a Muslim Apostate

Chances are that unless I’ve missed something somewhere, John Updike was never a Muslim. That fact makes his achievement with Terrorist very remarkable. Terrorist is spent almost entirely within the thoughts of an average American Muslim. Granted most American Muslims probably won’t go to the extreme that Ahmad, the protagonist of Terrorist, almost went, But America, please trust me on this: If your Muslim co-worker or schoolmate is always talking about his religion and the way it works and he makes his devotion to it obvious by, say, wearing the cap or robe, then THIS IS HOW HE THINKS. It’s the best glimpse inside his head you’re likely to ever get. If you are or were ever a devoted Muslim, Terrorist will strike a very resonant chord.

Terrorist is a scary book in that way. It perfectly captures the tearing of modern Muslims between faith and reality, and the frustration of fervent Muslims with westernized philosophies and society.

Ahmad tries to be Super Muslim, but temptations and disbelievers are all around him. Ahmad’s mindset is established in the very first sentence, in which he thinks of his schoolmates as devils who are trying to rob him of his faith. A short time later, Ahmad begins thinking of questions, but quickly rejects the questions as the whispers of Satan. The book goes on to explore Ahmad’s devotion to Islam in greater detail, and as it does so, you begin to realize something: Despite Ahmad’s efforts to keep Allah at the center of his universe, Ahmad is human. The temptations around him are all very real. You get the feeling that Ahmad’s extremism is more the result of these temptations and frustrations, and not his devotion.

Updike should also be commended for the obvious research he put into Terrorist. The book is sprinkled with Islamic terms and ideas lifted straight from the sources. The ultimate result is that Ahmad’s actions and thoughts are perfectly in synch with many of the lesser-known teachings of hardline Islam. Ahmad appears to be a cold character in many scenes, but the author makes it clear that he is just naively following the black-and-white laws handed down to him from Allah and interpreted by his extremist Islamic studies teacher at the mosque. Ahmad clearly wants to have a different attitude in some situations, but he follows a primitive interpretation of Islam which won’t let him. This is shown in a scene in which Ahmad goes to a church service after being invited by a girl he knows from school. All in all, Ahmad is presented in such a way that he is a very well-rounded human. We want to hate him, but we can’t.

I realize I’ve spent a lot of time talking about Ahmad here, but that’s because he essentially IS the whole book. Almost every other aspect of Terrorist was filler, and boy does it ever show. Even the main plot feels like it was hastily thrown together as an excuse to string along Ahmad’s thoughts. The main plot is about a conspiracy of Muslim extremists who want Ahmad to do some dirty work in the name of Allah. Unfortunately, minimal time is spent developing it. So when the climax arrives, it just feels like a massive cop-out.

Updike has famously had a lot to write about sex, but if there’s one book in which all the sex feels completely out of place, Terrorist is it. It could have something to do with the fact that outside of the bedroom between husband and wife, sex is arguably Islam’s biggest don’t-ask-don’t-tell taboo. In contrast to his devotion to this policy, Ahmad’s high school friend Joryleen becomes a hooker in a scene that feels forced in, and Ahmad’s mother and guidance counselor have an affair in an entire subplot that serves absolutely no purpose.

Furthermore, a lot of characters are themselves wasted. Ahmad’s mother is only there to explain why Ahmad is so devoted, or at least she tries to. Joryleen and her boyfriend Tylenol – yes that’s his name – both make the book longer than it has to be. And I didn’t buy into the idea of a guidance counselor who makes regular checkups after graduation, which is what the guidance counselor in Terrorist does. The counselor’s wife and the wife’s sister are minor characters in Terrorist and both are scenery decorations, despite the latter being the one who unearths the conspiracy. When she does learn about the conspiracy, we don’t actually get to see it with our own eyes. We hear about it via a phone call. It’s laughable. Perhaps Updike didn’t want his fans to think he was turning into Tom Clancy.

Despite the magnitude of those complaints, the way the book is written makes them into very minor complaints. What Updike appears to have been looking for by adding so many side ideas is a way to plausibly write a full-length novel about the psyche of a confused kid. I have to admit it was very engaging, and being a former Muslim myself, it was even a little scary how Updike was able to write my previous mindset so well. If you want to get an idea of the way a Muslim would probably think, Terrorist is the book to buy, and not non-fiction books authored by so-called scholars who will give you a one-sided view. It’s also the book to get if you want to read something interesting.