Mark Zuckerberg’s next big read is this Islamic history book

Facebook’s  CEO Mark Zuckerberg has committed to reading an important book every two weeks as part of his 2015 New Year’s resolutions, and up next is “The Muqaddimah,” a 14th century tome written by Islamic historian Ibn Khaldun.

The book, whose title translates to “The Introduction,” traces the progress of humanity while attempting to remove the biases captured in historical records and reveal the universal elements that connect us. It is often considered the most important Islamic history of the premodern world.

Kaldun, a lauded Arab scholar, is credited as one of the foundational thinkers of modern sociology, ethnography, and the philosophy of history.

One reviewer of the original English translation called it, “Undoubtedly the greatest work of its kind that has ever been created by any mind in any time or place … the most comprehensive and illuminating analysis of how human affairs work that has been made anywhere.”

Zuckerberg is known for his high-flying annual resolutions, which have ranged from killing his own meat to learning to speak Mandarin Chinese. This year’s challenge created a modern-day book club where Zuckerberg has encouraged other’s to join along and discuss each book on Facebook. ...