"This book is a most welcome addition to the relatively limited number of works that mediate the primary sources of early Islamic tradition to English-speaking audiences. By concentrating on the central Qur'anic theme of God prophets and messengers from Adam to Muhammad, it offers a rich but focused selection of original passages from both the Qur'an itself and other early Islamic texts. Selected and translated with thoughtfulness and care, the contents are accessible to beginning students in conjunction with secondary literature on the Qur'an and early Islam; the collection can serve also as a useful quick-reference handbook for scholars interested in the treatment of a particular prophetic figure in the Qur'an and early Muslim interpretation."--William A. Graham, Professor of the History of Religion and Islamic Studies, Harvard University