Literature Page

Author: Jean P. Sasson

Age: Upper high school to adult.

Genre: Biography

Topics for Discussion: women's rights, human rights, abuse, Middle East

Summary: This novel is actually more of an autobiography, but due to the nature of the book and the fact that the narrator put her life in jeopardy in order to tell her story, the book was written by Sasson. The book tells about the life of "Princess", a woman of the royal family in Saudi Arabia. She graphically portrays the inequities and injustices against women that are both acceptable and common in Saudi Arabia. Her own childhood was fraught with her father and brother's attempts to oppress her wild and outgoing nature. Later experiences would show her that forward women could pay for their indiscression with their lives.

Book Review: Reading this book was definitely an eye-opening experience. It's difficult to believe that women can be treated so horribly in the modern world and that a government would actually support and condone it all. I simply can't recommend this book enough, especially for those of us in the West who have so many liberties. It flies in the face of those who claim that Western countries should not interfere with Middle Eastern culture; is it still right to do nothing when a culture actually supports and encourages the rape, murder, and mutilation of women?

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Christian Perspectives: While this book is not written from a Christian perspective or with a Christian audience in mind, it does provide tremendous insight into Middle Eastern culture and the practice of Islam in Saudi Arabia. The book is extremely graphic and so is very inappropriate for young readers; as an older reader, I am willing to overlook its graphic nature since the descriptions are essential to understanding the conditions in which these women live.