Girls of Riyadh vs. Nine Parts of Desire

Dear Reader,

A belated Ramadan Kareem to all my brothers and sisters in Islam. I was told recently that I use Islamic-transliterated words and abbreviations in some of my posts that often don't mean anything to some readers. For that I sincerely apologise. To remedy this, I've set up a page for you, dear reader, if you come across a word/phrase/abbreviation that you are unfamiliar with. Link is also in the side bar --->

Now, given that it is a holy month for us Muslims, I thought I'd write something Islam related. But the question is "what do I write?" I am no expert on the religion and still have much to learn, Inshallah. So, as always I decided to stick to what I know. And what I know is a lot about books, Alhumdulillah. That is why this post is a comparative review of two somewhat-controversial books that I read recently, both of which are centred around Middle-eastern women:

The Girls of Riyadh by Rajaa Alsanae:

This is a fictional novel, based mainly in Saudi Arabia and written as a series of e-mail by the narrator, "seerehwenfadha'et", who is revealing the sensational/scandalous stories of her four friends: Sadeem, Gamrah, Lamees and Michelle (a.k.a Mishaal), these are, of course,  not their "real names". At first, this books reminded me strongly of Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants, you know what with the four close friends going their separate ways in life but still managing to keep in contact with each other. Story wise, it was gripping and emotional, but no way near as scandalous as I thought it would be. (Aside: maybe Julia Quinn's icky-romances have changed my ideas of "scandalous", who knows!)

But I soon realised that it was far far more than just that. It was a commentary on Saudi Society in general, with all it's cold and distant fathers, the ruling tribal traditions and selfish (and sometimes hypocritical) young men. I realised that this novel, however fictional,  represents a very real, very non-fictional Society in which few outsiders can find a niche into. This also made me incredibly angry!

You see, the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) worked so hard throughout his life to break down the barriers of tribal traditions and prejudices and racism within the Arab community at the time. This was also the reason behind some of his marriages. He set the example for Muslims that is was okay to marry someone from a different tribe or one of the Bedouins, or someone from a different social status, whether it was higher or lower. He, salallahu alaihi wasalam, even married a woman who was originally Jewish. It was permitted and encouraged to marry someone of different race, in order to increase cultural and international awareness and to promote equality and peace. There is even verses in the Qur'an to this effect. For example, in Surat Al-Hujarat it state:

"O mankind! indeed We have created you from male and female and made you into nations and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in sight of Allah is that who is most righteous." [49:13]   

You see, the thing that distinguishes true status is not race or tribe or cast or family or wealth or gender or age but righteousness, i.e. how good a person is. And it upsets me, truly pains me, to read about how now, more than 1400 years later, in an age that is supposedly "more advanced", that the people of Saudi Arabia still hold tight to the demeaning tribal traditions of inequality, values that were prominent in the the Age of Ignorance; especially when it comes to marriage, and a woman's say - her Islamic rights - when it comes to picking a spouse.   

Nine Parts of Desire: the Hidden World of Islamic Women by Geraldine Brooks

Written by Pultizer Prize winning Australian author and journalist, this is a non-fictional autobiography about the time Brooks spent travelling and reporting in the Middle-East. This books is really good in the way that it allows you to, as the title suggests, glimpse into the worlds of Muslim women from all walks of life: from those in war-strewn Palestine, an Eritrean doctor in the back-caves of Ethiopia, to women soldiers in the UAE army and Queen Noor of Jordan. It also gives you a brief/basic overview of what Islam is about and about the five pillars. It is interesting reading about these things from the perspective of someone who is not Muslim. Her views are rather fair-minded and she does not condemn Islam to be a religion of terrorism.        

However, there were certain passages in this books that make our Prophet (pbuh) sound like a tactful opportunist, or a player/womaniser, not something I particularly agree with. Also, there was subtle hints of bias against Aisha (RA), Muhammed's (pbuh) most beloved wife. This probably can be accounted for by the fact that Geraldine Brooks spent most of her time among the Iranian Shiite community. But, for some reason I cannot fathom, she also seems to have formed very strong opinions against Umar ibn al-Khattab (RA), the 2nd Kalipha after Muhammed sallahu-alaihi-wasalaam, often calling him a "cruel misogynist" or "Muhammed's misogynistic lieutenant"!!!! (*written while shrugging uncomprehendingly*)

But, if Brooks has taught me anything, its that it's not just good enough to justify our religion and show people that it does not condone violence etc. We have to stand up and take action against, or better yet, fix the wrongs that are being done in the name of Islam. And this should begin now, today in this holy month of Ramadaan. 

I don't have an exact solution to all the numerous problems that are effecting Muslim communities around the world. But I do know that a single person can only do so much. To accomplish real change, we need to stand united with solidarity, as one Ummah. We need to be willing to help each other out of any problem, whether it is the big global issues like oppression of women, political oppression and dictatorships, lawlessness and violence (domestic or other wise) or smaller but just as important issues, like female genital mutilation and forced marriages.

If you, dear reader, like this post and want to read more, then you might be interested in reading a similar post I wrote a few months ago about International Women's Day. If not then I'm sorry that this post is so serious, and some-what preachy, but I promise that next one will be a lot lighter and bubblier, Inshallah.


Nida