It was fascinating to read this book and "Mohammed: Founder of the world's most intolerant religion" together, as they are written from two completely different perspectives. Spencer portrays a Mohammed that has inspired generations of hate, intolerance, and violence, while Armstrong portrays somebody with the attributes of Jesus. I found them both biased, and I suspect the truth is somewhere in the middle of the two opinions, but it was refreshing to hear somebody who wasn't scared to death to be politically correct. At times it didn't seem possible that the two authors were talking about the same person. I think most of the difference was in what stories they told and what stories they didn't tell. Armstrong's book is filled with tales of Mohammed's compassion and how he treated his followers, while Spencer's book is concerned with stories of his battles, his punishments, and his vengeance. At times I thought Spencer was inflammatory and unfair, but there were many times that Armstrong glossed over or dismissed truly worrying episodes in Mohammed's life. Reading either one of these books individually I would give two stars, but reading them together makes the overall experience worthy of three.