In the Land of Invisible Women: A Female Doctor's Journey in the Saudi Kingdom by Qanta Ahmed.
It is obvious that the author is a medical doctor and not a writer. That being said, I learned quite a bit about Saudi Arabia and the Islamic faith, so the book was certainly not a waste of time. It's the story of a woman who lives and works as an M.D. in Saudi Arabia for 2 years. The book is not organized very well, and the author definitely displayed some bias in different areas. I was left wondering why she voluntarily signed on to work in Saudi Arabia if she didn't like the way they treated women. She participated in Hajj, the Islamic practice of making a pilgrimage to Mecca, which was really interesting. She discussed the religious police, the Muttawa, and how women work in such a segregated country where they must be fully veiled in public and are not allowed to drive. She was in Saudi Arabia when during 9/11, and the reactions she saw to the attacks by her co-workers were shocking.
It was a very educational read. I learned so much about Islam. I live south of St. Louis in the Midwest, and I don't have any acquaintances that are Jewish or Islamic, so it's good for me to read about different faiths as much as possible. We've got evangelical Christians busting out of our ears down here, but there is very, very little religious diversity.
It was worth reading, but I could've learned what I did elsewhere. I won't read it again.
What are you reading right now?
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