The Scimitar and the Veil: Extraordinary Women of Islam

by Jennifer Heath

The Scimitar and the Veil portrays over thirty extraordinary Muslim women from the birth of Islam through the 19th century. From scholars to warriors to concubines and queens, The Scimitar and the Veil gathers scholarship about the women of Islam into one fascinating book presented for a general readership. Based on sources ranging from Swahili lore to Persian pageant plays to Muslim feminist writings to the explorations of Western scholars of Islam, The Scimitar and the Veil is written in a poetic, sometimes humorous, energetic and contemporary style that will appeal to a broad range of readers. Muhammad was born to a widowed mother, tended by a slave woman, and fostered by a Bedouin woman. His marriage to Khadija, a wealthy businesswoman from Mecca was long, fruitful, and faithful. She was the first to convert to Islam. From Barakah, Muhammad's surrogate mother, and Fatima, his cherished daughter, to the Sufi mystic Rabi'a, The Scimitar and the Veil is the first popular history and overview of Muslim women and their great accomplishments. While there are other books about women in Islam, The Scimitar and the Veil is the most comprehensive and written in a style meant to appeal to a general audience. †

Genres: Islam, Nonfiction, Religion, History, Feminism, Middle East

496 pages, Hardcover

First published February 6, 2004

About the author

Librarian Note:
There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[bananananas · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a good starting point to learn about the lives of different women throughout the history of Islam, as well as their individual and varying contributions. I liked that the author took the book into historical fiction at times by imagining conversations between some of the historical figures. There were a few instances where I was taken aback that caused me to speculate over the accuracy of the information presented (not including the aforementioned "fiction" portions). One such instance was the allusion to the Prophet possibly consuming alcohol; there was no cited evidence for this so I'm confused as to what the author was trying to say there...

[Habeeb Akande · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Scimitar and the Veil portrays over thirty extraordinary Muslim women from the birth of Islam through the 19th century. From scholars to warriors to concubines and queens, The Scimitar and the Veil gathers scholarship about the women of Islam into one fascinating book presented for a general readership. While there are other books about women in Islam, The Scimitar and the Veil is very comprehensive and well-written in a style meant to appeal to a general audience. The author Jennifer Heath features remarkable stories of Arab, African, Asian, and European women of faith.

[A'isha Rahman · Rating 3 out of 5]

It reads more like a historical fiction, not what I was hoping for.
The literature aspect of it is well written, so if you are looking for something like that, this is a good book to read.

[Dina · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I'm not generally one for historical religious texts, this is a compilation of stories about the women who shaped Islam. Whether they supported a prominent Muslim figure or helped spread the word of Islam, these extraordinary women are finally getting their recognition. My favorite quote: "It is often said that two-thirds of the religion of Islam was handed down by women and one-third was shaped by women." Sounds feminist, I know...

[Sarah]

By my mother

[Cameron Powers · Rating 5 out of 5]

The sometimes warlike but more often loving and wise contributions of Islamic women from the time of Mohammad until the present are revealed.

[Foxglove · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little silly and melodramatic, especially the earlier chapters but interesting to learn about forgotten women.