I. Purpose of the assignment: to gain insight into women's lives through reading their own words and hearing their own "voice." To analyze and evaluate the work.

II. The assignment.

Write a 5-page book review of one of the books from the list below. These books have been chosen because they tell the story of a woman's life. The paper should not narrate the story told by the author but rather, evaluate the work on its own merits. Questions and criteria for evaluating the book follow. They should guide you but not limit you, as other questions may occur to you.

1. Authorial intention. Who is the author and why do you think she wrote her life's story? In the cases in which the books are not autobiographical, why did the author write about this particular woman?) What is the "message" she is trying to impart, if there is a message? Is she trying to convince the reader of something, and if so, what is it?

2. The book as a historical document. How does the book enlighten the reader about the history which the author/subject lived lived through, or which is portrayed in the book? What are some of the larger issues beyond the personal? How was the personal affected by the historical/political? Is the book able to provide the reader with historical information or is it suspect because it deals with a personal life? If the latter, explain and analyze. How should a book-length work deal with the personal in history? Evaluate this source regarding that question.

3. Memoirs, autobiography, biography or fiction as sources of history. Evaluate the genre as a source of history: is it effective? What are its strengths, weaknesses? (First, of course, be clear about which genre it is.) What did you learn about women and gender in the Middle East from reading this book?

4. Quality and structure of the writing. Is the book engaging and well-written? Is it clear and well-organized? How well does the author approach her subject? Evaluate the writing and how that affects the overall message.

1. Audience and style:

Write this paper for an educated, well-informed reader (i.e., me) who knows a great deal about the Middle East. Do not write it for a general audience. You do not need to explain broad historical themes, for example.Please avoid colloquialism and slang. This is a formal writing assignment but write in your own voice, and avoid trying to write in a style that is unnatural and complicated. Write clearly.

2. Format

• FONT: All papers are to be double-spaced, typed 12 font.
• PAGING: Pages are to be NUMBERED, and STAPLED. Warning: these are pet peeves of mine. Page number one is NOT the title page.
• TITLE PAGE: Do not use fancy covers. Provide a simple cover page with your name, the title of the paper, the name and number of the course, and the date.
• CITATION: proper citation is required for a quote or a paraphrase. For a book review, this means simply putting the author's name and the page number in parentheses: (author's name, page number). Example:
• Leila Ahmed begins her memoir about growing up in post-Nasser Egypt almost poetically, describing the "wind in the trees, each variety of tree having its own music" (Ahmed, 3).
• SPELLING, GRAMMAR, PUNCTUATION: All students in this course should have completed English 101 and 102 or the equivalent before taking this 300-level class. For this reason, there will be zero tolerance for spelling errors, zero tolerance for grammatical errors, and zero tolerance for punctuation errors. Mistakes will cost you in a lower grade. There are many sources of assistance available on campus to help you avoid errors. Use spell check. Have a friend read your paper. Bring your draft to me before handing in the final version. Go to the Write Place.

IV. Book Choice

All of the following except the starred titles are available either through Ohiolink or at Roesch. PLAN AHEAD. The starred titles may be borrowed from me. When you decide which book you plan to write about, please e-mail me and I will sign you up on this link. Maximum two students per book allowed. Alternatively, if you find something not on this list that you would like to propose, please see me and get it approved (or not).

Ahmed, Leila. A Border Passage. Brooke Folkerth, Beatriz Lizardi
al-Amir, Daisy.The Waiting List: An Iraqi Woman's Tales of Alienation. Malia Bajpai
Amrouche, Fadwa. My Life Story.Alli Lees, Angela Vansaghi
Attar, Samar. Lina: Portrait of a Damascene Girl. Lauren Hoke
Badr, Liana. The Eye of the Mirror. Kim Stachler, Maria Ruberg
El-Saadawi, Nawal. Memoirs from the Women's Prison. Jill Legan
*Farah, Majwa Kawar. A Continent Called Palestine. Lindsay Johanns
Husseini, Serene Shahid. Jerusalem Memories.
Kanafani, Fay Afaf. Nadia: Captive of Hope. Ellen Bailey, Alice Hoenigman
Kordi, Gohar. An Iranian Odyssey. Kathryn Chiacchia
Makdisi, Jean. Beirut Fragments. Beth Peterson
Mernissi, Fatima. Dreams of Trespass. Sara Sackstedder, Sarah Mulcahy
Nelson, Cynthia. Doria Shafik, Egyptian Feminist. Sara White-Petteruti
*Sakakini, Hala. Jerusalem and I. Alisha Roode
Serageldin, Samia.The Cairo House. Sara Shaw
al-Shaykh, Hanan. The Story of Zahra. Laura Brown
al-Shaykh, Hanan. Beirut Blues. Carla Rossi
Sha`rawi, Huda. Harem Years. Amy Wappner, Traci Patrick
Soueif, Ahdaf. The Map of Love. Lindsay Hawkins, Jenny Schumacher
Tuqan, Fadwa. A Mountainous Journey. Ahmed Abonamah
al-Zayyat, Latifa. The Open Door.