Daughters of Tunis: Women, Family, and Networks in a Muslim City

I'd purchased this book years ago, and finally got around to reading it a couple months ago. It was such a hard start, but some weeks ago I got past the intro. Ugh, I should not read have bothered with the intro. Unless you're reading this for school, it isn't helpful and it will make it a hard read. You can read the intro last. It's all methodology, research tactics. Important to understand perspective, but not critical to appreciate the book. So, once you get past the intro, the meat of this book is incredible. You just can't get this information elsewhere. It's priceless. I've not found enough resources on Tunisian culture and women in Tunisia/North Africa (in English) that are truly informative like this. Most books offer just the tourist perspective, this offers you life perspectives, and insights into the real people and families of Tunis. Yes, it's a bit dated, but when you need a starting point for understanding Tunisia and Tunisians, this is incredibly helpful. Tunisia is such a very different country, and this book finally tells some of the story of its people. I'm impressed and pleased. It's a reference book that, outside of the intro, is actually a pretty easy read.

This study is an engaging often humorous read that does not follow the stereotypical media representation of the Muslim women. In this easy to read yet scholarly study, Holmes-Eber invites us to meet tens of real Muslim women. Not the mistreated and oppressed media cartoon, but women that we can relate to and understand. If you are looking for yet another sensationalized depiction of downtrodden Arab women find another book. If, however, you would like to discover what real Muslim women are like, this is one of the few and far between books that you should read. I read the book in two nights and found it utterly refreshing! Especially in light of recent events this book will help all of us Americans to see Arabs and Muslims as people first, making us question the Arab enemy image that we are continually bombarded with. This book is truly a contribution to cultural understanding and hopefully world peace.