Some literary criticism can manage to be interesting reading; others get so lost in providing the context of literary movements that the general audience can’t help but be bored by them. The first half of this work falls in the latter category. Sherif, after giving a reasonable overview of Koda’s life, proceeds to given excruciating detail of generational and literary context for her work. This involves extensive discussions of other writers so that she can make extensive comparisons. Fortunately, Sherif ends the collection with her translations of some of Koda’s essays and allows the reader to get a glimpse of the simplicity and directness of her prose.