Author of "The Jewel of Medina" and the sequel, "The Sword of Medina," scheduled for U.S. publication in Oct. 2009, I've been called an "Islamopanderer" and accused of "sugar-coating pedophilia" by anti-Muslims and, by one UT professor, of writing a "soft-core porn" book likely to incite acts of Islamic terrorism.

"The Jewel of Medina," an international best-seller, tells the story of A'isha bint Abu Bakr, the Prophet Muhammad's youngest and most beloved wife, and how she grew from a girl wholly controlled by men into a fiery, witty, powerful leader and scholar. 

The sequel, "The Sword of Medina," continues A'isha's story after Muhammad's death, and is very much her rival, Ali's story, as well. It details the origins of the Sunni-Shi'a split and reveals how women began to lose the rights they gained during Muhammad's lifetime. Learn more at http://www.authorsherryjones.com.

I have also worked as a journalist since I was 18, reporting for newspapers in North Carolina, suburban Philadelphia, and Montana, my adopted home state, as well as for magazines and other publications as a freelance reporter. 

And in 1989 I co-wrote "The Hiker's Guide to Montana's Continental Divide Trail,"  published by Falcon Press, for which I hiked 961 miles on bad feet. Some of us will do anything to publish a book.