Nine Parts of Desire
1994 • 255 pages
Ratings3
Average rating4.3
15
Ratings3
Average rating4.3
With a New Afterword. As a prizewinning foreign correspondent for The Wall Street Journal, Geraldine Brooks spent six years covering the Middle East through wars, insurrections, and the volcanic upheaval of resurgent fundamentalism. Yet for her, headline events were only the backdrop to a less obvious but more enduring drama: the daily life of Muslim women. Nine Parts of Desire is the story of Brooks' intrepid journey toward an understanding of the women behind the veils, and of the often contradictory political, religious, and cultural forces that shape their lives. Defying our stereotypes about the Muslim world, Brooks' acute analysis of the world's fastest growing religion deftly illustrates how Islam's holiest texts have been misused to justify repression of women, and how male pride and power have warped the original message of a once liberating faith. From the Trade Paperback edition.
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A very readable and in depth look at the lives of Islamic women throughout the Middle East. The author had many contacts and access to the women interviewed in the book, with an eye toward getting at the women's stories without their being afraid for their reputations and their lives.
I especially appreciated the organization of the book, starting with individual issues involving what female children within the Islamic family are faced with, progressing into their family roles and marriage, then the larger world of school, workplace, and politics. Finally, there is the international stage of sports and the arts. Each chapter is written to show the hidden reality of women's lives in these sociological niches, and also contrasted with what the Koran says (or doesn't say!) and/or a hadith (sayings of the prophet) interpretation concerning the role or status of women in that setting. Invariably, historical/cultural practices from within the various countries seem to be the reasoning for most of the restrictions and rules placed on women, rather than something revealed from the Koran or through Mohammed.
If you enjoy reading nonfiction that reads like fiction, you'll enjoy the writing style of this book, whether the topic interests you or not. But I hope readers will feel compelled to at least pay more attention to current events in the world that work against women in the Islamic world and bring more awareness to the issues and debates.
