The Way of the Strangers

Encounters with the Islamic State

By: Graeme Wood

Narrated by: Jeff Harding

From Graeme Wood, author of the explosive Atlantic cover story 'What ISIS Really Wants', comes the definitive book on the history, psychology, character and aims of the Islamic State. Based on Wood's unprecedented access to supporters, recruiters and high-ranking members of the most infamous jihadist group in the world, The Way of the Strangers is a riveting, fast-paced deep dive into the apocalyptic dogma that informs the group's worldview, from the ideas that motivate it to the 'fatwa factory' that produces its laws to its very specific plans for the future. By accepting that ISIS truly believes the end is nigh, we can understand its strategy - and predict what it will do next.

©2016 Graeme Wood (P)2017 Audible, Ltd

Critic reviews

"Wood is a fearless, relentlessly curious and magnetically interesting writer who takes us on an intellectual and theological journey to the darkest places on the planet, and yet he manages to do this without despairing for our collective future. This book is a triumph of journalism." (Jeffrey Goldberg, editor in chief, The Atlantic)

Convincing, well-researched, thoughtful, frighteni

Via its absorbing retelling of probing interviews with supporters of the Islamic State, and a compelling analysis of publications by its adherents, "The Way of the Strangers" provides important insight into what really motivates the organisation. The evidence shows convincingly that the organisation is (despite common opinions to the contrary): thoroughly religious, part of an authentic strand of Islam, and a genuine threat to human well-being worldwide.

It's also chilling to compare the intense self-assurance of the IS supporters with the intense self-assurance of the Trump fan boys.

In short, the book is convincing, well-researched, thoughtful, and frightening.