A Woman Is No Man in Around the World in 80 Books

Mar 26, 2021 Daina rated it really liked it

Maybe it's my preference for going into new television shows, movies, books, etc. without knowing what to expect that leads me to enjoying things a lot more than I would have otherwise. With that being said, I definitely wasn't expecting this book to be as depressing and as heartbreaking as it was; nevertheless, I adored it.

"A Woman Is No Man" follows three generations of Palestinian women living in Brooklyn, New York. The novel discusses the internal identity conflict many may face between bein Maybe it's my preference for going into new television shows, movies, books, etc. without knowing what to expect that leads me to enjoying things a lot more than I would have otherwise. With that being said, I definitely wasn't expecting this book to be as depressing and as heartbreaking as it was; nevertheless, I adored it.

"A Woman Is No Man" follows three generations of Palestinian women living in Brooklyn, New York. The novel discusses the internal identity conflict many may face between being a Palestinian immigrant and an Arab-American. It examines the significance of culture and community and the ways that they uplift, as well as the way they may weigh heavy on hearts seeking progress and development.

My heart ached for Isra who left her family and everything she knew to emigrate to the States for the promise of love and a better life. Instead, she feels burdened and smothered by the role of a woman in her family's culture. The freedom she sought in the Land of the Free is not attainable for her.

Her mother-in-law, Fareeda, is her only ally for a time, (view spoiler)

The exact unfolding of Isra's heartbreaking circumstances is a mystery to Deya, the couple's eldest daughter. Deya was told by Fareeda that both of her parents had passed away in a car accident. The story begins with Deya feeling as trapped as Isra, being showcased to young men for the prospect of marriage at the age of 17. Deya wants nothing more than to go to college but in her family, marriage comes first. Feeling resigned and hopeless, Deya is about to accept her fate but receives a mysterious letter from a familiar woman that will rock her and her family to their very core.

Over the course of the story, as the timelines interweave to reveal more information, you realize the disturbing truth behind the events of the past, as well as the ways in which family played a part in concealing it. The novel is slow to start in my opinion, but once the puzzle pieces started falling together and you realize the darkness and heartbreak awaiting Isra, you're hooked. It is a heartrending story but one that is entirely captivating.

Much can be said about the characters, their culture and traditions, and their motives, but what I'll share as my favorite aspect is the undeniable resiliency every woman showed in unbelievably harsh conditions. At the end of the day, yes, this includes Fareeda.

I highly recommend "A Woman Is No Man" and I am looking forward to the next offering by Etaf Rum. I think it's so valuable to expand your worldview and read from perspectives other than your own (my Western values definitely colored my reactions to what I was reading, hence why my heart was broken 100% of the time), so I'm eagerly following Rum's career to see what she releases next. ...more

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Jul 17, 2019 Kat rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2019

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jan 17, 2020 Carol rated it it was amazing

Shelves: potential-book-club-books, book-club-books

Not an easy book but I became attached to the characters, the women that is. They angered me, they worried me, I felt compassion for them and I wanted their circumstances to improve. After generations of misogyny, patriarchy and a culture of abuse, the cycle is breaks. Well written.

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Dec 07, 2021 Daisy rated it liked it

Shelves: ny, israel, palestine, readers, aroundtheworld2021

She knew that the suffering of women started in the suffering of men, that the bondage of one became the bondages of the other. Would the men in her life have battered her had they not been battered themselves?

"You need to make sure our culture survives, and that means teaching a woman her place."

Isra wanted to be angry at him for not seeing how much she had given up, but instead found herself pitying him. He was only doing what was expected of him.

What terrified Isra most was not the force of h ...more

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Jul 11, 2019 Kay Green rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Fast read. it is the story of three generations of Palestinian women living in Brooklyn in current times. The society they live in is totally Paternalistic - with the men making every decision and the women living lives to cook, clean and have children. The women were only slightly educated and even though they chose to live in America they disdained the American freedoms that women and children take for granted.
Paints a very dismal picture for women roles in that culture - but even the men were ...more

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Sep 01, 2020 Wes F rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Wow--what a debut novel! Overall, I thought this was an excellent book; it kept me deeply engaged right till the end, though at the end if petered out a bit. What an expose--in the setting of a novel--about the general status of women in so many Islamic cultures...which is, well, basically nothing. Yes, the title declares it all: a woman is no man. A woman is to be sheltered, cloistered, beaten, subservient, and, if not "up to snuff" (e.g. no son produced)--blamed. Such a sad situation for so ma ...more

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