Rating: 
Summary: Anecdotal & thoughtful...
Review: Geraldine Brooks, a journalist who spent many years in the Middle East as a writer for the Wall Street Journal has written an insightful, original look at the role of women in the world of Islam. It is interesting and entertaining. Unfortunately, it is also somewhat superficial.Each chapter opens with a pertinent quote from the Koran. The chapters themselves deal with such subjects as women's sports in Islamic nations, women's education, women in politics & arranged marriages. Ms. Brooks looks at these issues using examples from the full spectrum of Islamic belief which ranges from the harshness of Saudi Arabia to the liberalism of Turkey & the former Soviet states. Sometimes, however, her anecdotal style & lack of flow between chapters caused frustration in this reader. Each chapter in the book is a stand-alone essay. There does not seem to be a logical progression in time, geography or understanding. It seems as if each section was re-printed from magazines or newspapers, yet the title pages list no credits that would reflect this; maybe Ms. Brooks did a series of lectures that became "9 Parts of Desire". Whatever the reason, I personally felt the book would have benefited from a more linear progression, as the author immersed herself deeper into the Islamic world. Another option might have been to divide the chapters into discussions of each country, rather than by issue. What I enjoyed most about this book was the author's very original reading of the Koran & Mohammed's hadiths. As she explains in the first chapter, many of the Koran's revelations concerning the details of women's life came to the Prophet as a result of domestic problems he was experiencing. Her contrasting of the known facts of Mohammed's daily life to modern-day Islamic traditions is quite fascinating as well as valuable. Ms. Brooks also gives the reader some historical background to better understand the evolution of modern Islamic thought. For the general reader, "9 Parts of Desire" will prove an informative introduction to an alien viewpoint. Almost anyone will find it entertaining & thought-provoking.
Rating: 
Summary: Amazing insights to world of Islamic women
Review: Read this some months ago and have just finished Geraldine's Year of Wonders ie 1666 of an English Plague Village. I have read it three times - remarkable and unexpected ending. Worth adding to my bedside table. Her 9 parts of desire is a must for men. Michael S Parer
Rating:
Summary: eye opening and fair
Review: I enjoyed this book enormously and consider it should be compulsory reading! A very fair, balanced, and seemingly unbiased view, opening one's eyes to what really happens, how and why, forcing the reader to ask questions. Read it and enjoy through the tears!
Rating: 
Summary: Not particularly recommended
Review: I picked up this book and was happy to see on the back cover that it would show how "Islam's holiest texts have been misused" and will "defy" the reader's stereotypes about their perceptions on Islam. Finally, I thought, something positive about Muslim women! But when a book starts off with an incorrect fact, you know there's something wrong right off the bat. To clarify, Brooks starts off the book with a quote from Ali ibn Abu Taleb (a quote we don't even know where she got from!) and states that Ali is the founder of the Shiite sect of Islam. Wrong! Ali died before the Shiite sect was founded and he would have never allowed for such a divide between Muslims to occur.
I won't get into a lengthy explanation of why I thought this work was lacking. I will simply quote another reader's review: "...They don't want their ill treatment tied to the Islamic religion, but as the author points out, all you have to do is read the Koran to find out that it endorses wife beating, polygamy & child marriage, says that women's testimony is worth less than men's, that women shall inherit less than men, etc., etc. The Koran clearly describes women as second -class citizens." Now you tell me, if a reader is getting this from Brooks' book, has Ms. Brooks really done a good job of defying our stereotypes and illustrating that Islam's holiest texts have been misused (as it says so on the back of the book)? I think not. I would recommend "Daughters of Another Path" by Carol L. Anway for a more refreshing read.
Rating:
Summary: read as a personal account, not factual history
Review: Once you recognize that Ms. Brooks has her own hang-ups about woman's role in the world of Islam, you get a lot more out of this book of her travels in the early 1990s as an Australian woman to different Muslim countries and the women and men whom she meets. The topics covered are fascinating --- how Muslim women train for battle, their university studies, her own encounters with Queen Noor of Jordan (who spoke at my university graduation during that time, as her adopted daughter was in my class.) I'll admit I skipped the chapter on cliterodectomies --- I was too squeamish. Ms. Brooks inserts snippets from the Koran and Prophet Mohammad's life into her text, and I am unsure of their accuracy. Also perturbing is her tone towards Prophet Mohammad --- we know he is human, but she seems to insinuate some of the baser human qualities upon him. I felt this is very disturbing and disrespectful, and was not even necessary in her accounts. This is a good book to be read (with a grain of salt) for a snapshot of people in different countries at different moments in time, but by no means should anyone take it as a definitive text on a religion.
Rating: 
Summary: ehh
Review: I must first say that I take offense as a muslim woman who lives in the U.S. that reviewers are constantly referring to this book as an "insight" women in the muslim world. THe Middle East is NOT the muslim world, it only contains 20% of all muslims. The majority of muslims live in ASIA, places such as Indonesia, Malaysia, southern Thailand and AFRICA, not just northern African countries that you hear so much of nowadays such as Egypt and ALgeria but countries such as Kenya, Ghana and Nigeria. I do not condone any of the atrocities that take place in the name of Islam in ANY countries, but I am highly offended when someone can write a book, stating various "facts" such as hadiths that she has no source to back up. That greatly takes away from the validity of ANY text. But I also believe that the author did not approach this book with an unbiased eye. SHe did make some interesting points but overall I am extremely disappointed in what I read, especially because I feel that it is doing nothing but fanning the flames of ignorance that surrounds Islam now!
Rating:
Summary: Transparent prejudice thinly veiled
Review: It's sad that Geraldine Brooks is unable to veil her dislike of the people - including the women - she writes about. Her very choice of words and the way she describes people - whether they are her personal colleagues or relatives of Khomeini - belie her prejudice, which makes it impossible for her to write anything objective. Good thing another Western women - Elizabeth Fernea -addressed the task in a far more professional manner.
Rating:
Summary: Very clear eyed and interesting -- worth reading
Review: This is an interesting anecdotal discussion of the plight of women in Islamic countires. The stories are vividly told, and always interesting, and she has a nice ey for detail. Refreshingly, the author is unwilling to let the abuses slide with a some platitude about multi-culturalism. There are some annoyances. She tries too hard at times to argue that "real" Islam would not be like this, and her discussions of Islamic history are unskeptical. She takes a couple cheap shots at some westernm politicians she doesn't like. But the material she covers is all well covered, and important. If you are wavering, just read the bad reviews here, and see how tendentiuous and vacuous they are.
Rating:
Summary: Islamic Societies Unveiled !
Review: Geraldine Brooks has that wonderful journalist's way of making every word count. This book was so interesting it was difficult to put down. She tells us about women she meets on her travels through several Middle Eastern countries, describing the erosion of women's rights as the fundamentalists gain influence. Several reviewers denied what she writes is true, how can you blame them? Of course they are ashamed of the way men treat them in their societies. They don't want their ill treatment tied to the Islamic religion, but as the author points out, all you have to do is read the Koran to find out that it endorses wife beating, polygamy & child marriage, says that women's testimony is worth less than men's, that women shall inherit less than men, etc., etc. The Koran clearly describes women as second -class citizens. It is very sad to read that there are so many people living without freedom and justice in the 21st century. The world needs brave ladies like Geraldine Brooks who will go out and report the truth wherever they find it.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic
Review: I think this was a great book and I couldnt put it down. I think Geraldine really gave an unbiased account based on the woman that she met. If you think she only gave a few positive accounts of Muslim womens lives, that is beacuse of all she met there were only a few who seemed happy and respected.
This is a fascinating story for us westerners who take our freedoms for granted.
Thanks Geraldine Brooks for a great book!
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