Big Little Steps

This book consists of five chapters: ‘Faith’, ‘A Way of life’, ‘Womankind’, ‘Prayer’ and ‘Togetherness’. The chapters and topics are arranged in an order of importance, based on the reverts’ experiences. The author describes her own personal journey of discovering Islam and how she had to live a lie, hide her faith, her true self and be ‘in hiding’. She wanted to share the lessons she has learned and ‘give personal advice to those discovering their faith or reconnecting with Islam, wanting to live their lives as practising Muslims.’

In Chapter One, the author discusses the Islamic faith, the definition of Islam, the miracles of the Holy Qur’an and three of the six articles of faith: God, the messengers and the revealed Scriptures. In Chapter Two, she explains that Islam is a way of life in the sense that it takes care of the body. She argues that Islam is not just about a code of rules and regulations but is a perfect vision of life to ensure spiritual, physical, emotional and mental health. Taking care of the soul, body, heart and mind is an integral part of Islam. She examines fasting and praying, natural medicine, the power of words and blessings from ten types of foods mentioned in the Qur’an and the Sunnah. Loujayne also discusses the necessity of taking care of beauty, both physical and spiritual, with the face being a reflection of the soul, since Beauty is an attribute of God. This also means working on one’s heart. Finally, the author looks at feminine hygiene and body rules including sexuality and family planning, and the necessity of checking whether the beauty products that Muslim women use are tialal especially if they are made from animal products. Another practical and important aspect examined in this chapter is diet, describing the foods and drinks that Muslims can eat (tialal) and cannot eat (tiaram), the etiquettes of eating, and the importance of reciting the basmalah before eating. She concludes the chapter with some tips on maintaining mental health.