This time I want to discuss about one novel that is very popular in Indonesia around 2004-2005. The novel is "Ayat-Ayat Cinta" (The Verses of Love). I take from the review made by Rini Ekayanti. Here it this...
Novel Ayat-Ayat Cinta
The Verses of Love is an Islamic novel written by a novelist from Indonesia, and as well as a scholar from Al Azhar University, Cairo, Habiburrahman El Shirazy, is an Islamic and romantic novel. This novel gives a detail description about many aspects of Islam including the relationship between Moeslems and non-Moeslems in their social interaction, between husband and wife, among friends, etc. It consist of 411 pages of colaboration issues in Islamic teaching, social - culture interaction, education, laws, politics, and of course, love story. And if you read it, maybe you'll find more. This novel was first published in December 2004, and the second print of it followed in January 2005.
As an Islamic novel, the norms in Islamic teaching are being represented in a nature way, so that when we read it, there is no assumption that the appearence of them are seem to be 'forced'. Thus, after reading the novel, we automatically get the knowledge of Islam deeply and even don't recognise it at all. This is one of the best parts of the novel.
Another unique way used by the writer is his ability to describe every setting taken place in the novel. The way how he creates the protagonist character makes us as the reader fell that it is him himself. He successes to make the character 'lives' in every part of the novel. Further, the way how he describe the Cairo city makes us fell that we ever come to that place before, and imagine the situation as if it happens in front of us.
Other important point of it is the romantic element involving the protagonist. That is why this novel can be supposed as a romantic novel, besides islamic or religious one. The expressions used by the write to describe the protagonist felling toward 4 different women that love him simply don't represent in a 'vulgarism'. But, this novel doesn't lose its romantic fantasy as well. In fact, this things make readers, particularlly women, have a desire to experience the same romantic story as happened in the novel.
Actually, there are still a lot more good points that can be find in this novel. I suggest everyone who has not read it to read it now. It is really a good novel, not only for Moeslems. This novel can also be one of the references for those who want to know Islam, because all religious, I think, teach us the same thing that we should love each other, etc. And after reading this novel, you can decide yourself whether this novel is religious, cultural, or romantic novel.
