rcne@machaids.UUCP (08/16/83)
The Hidden Face of Eve
Women in the Arab World
by Nawal El Saadawi
This book is written by the former Director of Public Health
of Egypt. She writes about the practice of female circumcision.
She gives a graphic description of her own personal experiences.
Male members of her family came into her room in the middle of
the night with long knives. Her and her sister were taken to
the bathroom, stripped and held down. All she remembers before
she fainted was her mother looking over the men's shoulders.
Other topics are virginity, incest and fertility.
I do not recommend this book for those with weak stomachs.
However, I found it informative. The author does a good
job of describing the culture and customs of the Arab world.
One happy note: Things are changing. Female circumcisions
are not common practice among the upper classes any more.