Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women

WORLDWIDE BESTSELLER: The Pulitzer Prize–winning author shares the experiences of a diverse group of Middle Eastern Muslim women. Being an accomplished foreign journalist and an Australian-American, Brooks's study aims to comprehend the vulnerable position of women after Islamic fanaticism.

"Frank, enraging, and captivating." - The Times of New York

The narrative of Brooks' daring quest to comprehend the women concealed beneath the veil and the often conflicting governmental, religious, and cultural influences influencing their lives is told in Nine Parts of Desire. Defying our stereotypes about the Muslim world, Brooks' acute analysis of the world's fastest growing religion deftly illustrates how Islam's holiest texts have been misused to justify repression of women, and how male pride and power have warped the original message of a once liberating faith. Geraldine Brooks covered wars, revolutions, and the explosive rise of Islamic fundamentalism in the Middle East for six years as a Wall Street Journal foreign reporter and prizewinner. However, she saw the major events as only the setting for a more subtle yet lasting drama: Muslim women's everyday lives.