The Jewel of Medina in Q & A with Sherry Jones

Oct 04, 2008 Ron rated it liked it

Shelves: debut-novel, religious, historical-fiction, islam

Anybody who says this novel is "soft-core pornography," as Islamic studies professor Denise Spellberg did, must have some sort of agenda -- there is nothing in this book that even remotely meets that standard. There are scenes where sex is implied, one scene where sexual intercouse is about to take place but does not, and one scene in which a six-year-old A'isha witnesses two adults having sex without fully understanding what she's seeing--but even that is presented in a non-pornographic way in Anybody who says this novel is "soft-core pornography," as Islamic studies professor Denise Spellberg did, must have some sort of agenda -- there is nothing in this book that even remotely meets that standard. There are scenes where sex is implied, one scene where sexual intercouse is about to take place but does not, and one scene in which a six-year-old A'isha witnesses two adults having sex without fully understanding what she's seeing--but even that is presented in a non-pornographic way in a single paragraph.

Look, it's pretty straightforward: This is to Islam what books like The Red Tent are to Judaism: a reimagining of the historical/scriptural figures in order to give their stories additional layers of psychological complexity aimed at making them more understandable to modern readers. Yes, it portrays A'isha, the child bride of Muhammad, as a selfish brat whose attempts to assert her independence almost always end up hurting others rather than helping her until she finally develops some maturity and empathy... this is different from average teenagers how?

I suppose particularly fervent Muslims might take offense at the notion that A'isha wasn't exactly thrilled at the number of wives Muhammad took, and that on occasion she (along with other wives) was less than entirely respectful to him as a result. Or the scenes in which Jones argues that A'isha was seriously tempted to commit adultery--though she backs down from that plan at the last minute. So what? These fictional plot elements hardly seem on a par with, say, the idea that Jesus was conceived when the Virgin Mary was raped by a Roman soldier in terms of offensiveness.

Ultimately, your interest may largely depend on how much you care about historical figures reimagined as proto-feminists, although the dynamic between A'isha and Muhammad's other wives is entertaining once it kicks into gear. Also worth nothing: the story ends on a slightly frustrating cliffhanger (a sequel is already scheduled for publication). Whatever quibbles one has with the story's execution, though, it's great to see that the book found a publisher who refused to give in to malicious, ignorant threats. ...more

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Mar 27, 2021 Sherry added it · (Review from the author) · review of another edition

This is the ebook version of this beloved international best-selling novel about the youngest wife of the Prophet Muhammad, founder of Islam. Originally slated for publication by Random House/Ballantine Books, it lost that publisher due to fears that Muslim terrorists might attack the publishing company. Beaufort Books published it in Oct. 2008 without incident; however, my British publisher Gibson Square, was targeted, and three men arrested in connection with that attack.

The love story between ...more

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Oct 27, 2008 Ozma rated it really liked it

I finally finished a book! Yippee! So, yes, as Muslims have criticized, this book depicts the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). BUT, the author isn't Muslim so she isn't restricted by this guideline. While some aspects are weak and would give much fodder to Muslims to be offended over, OVERALL, the book is a work of a fiction, so we shouldn't let these details get to us. Of course, Ms. Jones had to "imagine" a lot of details that were not ever recorded (especially about the Prophet's wives' inner sanctum ...more

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Jan 02, 2010 MissSusie rated it really liked it

This was historical fiction telling the story of A'isha Bint Abi Bakr child bride of the Prophet Muhammad. It's set at the beginning of the of Islam, while it is a story of the beginnings of Islam it is more a story of A'ish and her life. It’s told in first person from A'isha's point of view, she was promised/engaged to Muhammad very young and married him when she was 9 years old. She was his third wife and after seeing her mother be a kind of slave to the head wife in her own home A'isha vows t ...more

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Nov 03, 2009 Galesplace rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fabulous

I really got into this one. About women in the 6th century without rights and yet one woman makes a difference.

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Aug 19, 2008 Michelle marked it as to-read

read an excerpt on NPR and really don't see why it would be offensive from the bit I read. Would really like a chance of reading this if they ever decide to actually publish it! ...more

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Feb 14, 2012 Sherry is currently reading it · (Review from the author)

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Dec 10, 2009 Anne rated it really liked it

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