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zebac's review against another edition
5.0
Although this is a tough read, it is very worthwhile. It is difficult reading story after story of loss, defeat, torture and murder, but overall, surprisingly, there is a spirit of optimism and positivity conveyed by the many brave Muslim individuals who are standing up to Islamic fundamentalism. Over and over, Bennoune rightly reminds us that the greatest victims of terror and extremism are not westerners, awful as the attacks in France and Belgium have been this past year, but peaceful, law-abiding, tolerant Muslims who want to live in a safe, civil society where men and women have equality and children can grow up safely without being abducted. Is this really too much to ask?
arixen's review
4.0
I don’t think that I can condense this down to a small narrative review. So, instead I pulled quotes that made me either think a little more or that I enjoyed from the book.
“She thinks the return of religion has a lot to do with losing hope. When bad things are happening. Uncertainty pushes people to seek absolutes as a kind of anchor, but that anchor can drift, pulling them in a different direction. As the world is changing and people are feeling less accepted, they are returning to their religion and then that itself shifts.” I think this is the most powerful quote in the book. I think this is not only a reflection of those in Islam but those in other religions.. i.e. Christianity in America.
“Well, any religion that would… condemn me for trying to find love with someone of my own biological gender, is a faith I’m better off without”
You can’t ride a camel and duck”
You are tall. You are riding a camel. You are visible. You can’t have it both ways. If you want to do something and have an impact, you have to accept the consequences.”
“She thinks the return of religion has a lot to do with losing hope. When bad things are happening. Uncertainty pushes people to seek absolutes as a kind of anchor, but that anchor can drift, pulling them in a different direction. As the world is changing and people are feeling less accepted, they are returning to their religion and then that itself shifts.” I think this is the most powerful quote in the book. I think this is not only a reflection of those in Islam but those in other religions.. i.e. Christianity in America.
“Well, any religion that would… condemn me for trying to find love with someone of my own biological gender, is a faith I’m better off without”
You can’t ride a camel and duck”
You are tall. You are riding a camel. You are visible. You can’t have it both ways. If you want to do something and have an impact, you have to accept the consequences.”
sandyjhutti's review
4.0
Perfect book to throw in the face of anyone who says Muslims aren't doing anything to fight fundamentalist
deynon's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Violence, Murder, and War
Minor: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Suicide, Torture, Police brutality, and Kidnapping
horseyhayls's review against another edition
5.0
Easily the best book I've read this year. Also, probably the most suitable book recommendation for those who've been asking what "moderate" Muslims are doing to actively reject fundamentalism. They're doing PLENTY.
Stories of resistance include those of feminists, LGBT+ activists, school teachers on the West Bank, religious Muslims, atheists and agnostics of Muslim heritage, people continuing to encourage cultural and arts events despite direct threats to their lives, and people involved in the Arab Spring of 2011. Stories from Mali to Pakistan to Chechnya.
What I particularly got out of this book was the very valid critique of the views of some left-wingers, academics and Western feminists which seem to unwittingly accommodate some fundamentalist views on things like "equality and the role of religion in public life" and do more to support an Islamist worldview than anything else. And yes, women covering their heads is discussed in relation to this.
People of all political persuasions should give this a read - your perspectives will be all the better for it at the end.
Stories of resistance include those of feminists, LGBT+ activists, school teachers on the West Bank, religious Muslims, atheists and agnostics of Muslim heritage, people continuing to encourage cultural and arts events despite direct threats to their lives, and people involved in the Arab Spring of 2011. Stories from Mali to Pakistan to Chechnya.
What I particularly got out of this book was the very valid critique of the views of some left-wingers, academics and Western feminists which seem to unwittingly accommodate some fundamentalist views on things like "equality and the role of religion in public life" and do more to support an Islamist worldview than anything else. And yes, women covering their heads is discussed in relation to this.
People of all political persuasions should give this a read - your perspectives will be all the better for it at the end.
jdscott50's review against another edition
4.0
Karima Bennoune documents the struggle against Islamic Extremism in her book Your Fatwa Does Not Apply Here. Bennoune reveals horror after horror in Pakistan, Afghanistan, North Africa (Algeria specifically) and the Middle East, but also shows those brave enough to resist. In this exploration, she is further able to reveal these offshoots of The Islamic religion. That this extremist turn is actually fairly new forming out of 1980s extremism. Everyone interprets the Koran differently with these extremists seemingly using it as a tool to turn people against one another and oppress their minds. It is only those showing a peaceful way will there be growth and not darkness.
Bennoune’s story tells of attempts to further art and intellectual thought in the heart of the most extreme Muslim fundamentalists. It is the bravery to go on with the plays, musical performances, journalism, and intellectual activity that fill this book. In their acts, they reveal a culture that has existed long before this extremism took hold. They expose the flimsy arguments behind those that would claim these acts as forbidden as a result of Koran.
Bennoune has a personal connection of those who have shown a light in the darkness as she watched her homeland of Algeria become the next Afghanistan when Muslim fundamentalists took over the country from the inside. It is those who are willing to fight, not with guns, but with art, plays, journalism, and intellectual freedom and courage that demonstrate the most extreme type of bravery. It is a story of those who are willing to be jailed or killed to help light the darkness.
It is a clear eyed view of the complicated nature of the Muslim world. I am Malala demonstrates the same type of courage in the face of Islamic Fundamentalism. In that case, young girls were forbidden to attend school, but she was able to find a way to push back against the extremism, leading to her being almost fatally shot. The book reads very much like Half the Sky in searching for real solutions to the destruction of fundamentalism. It is the multiplication of the voices of peace.
Best Passages
"Were we not Muslims before? Is this the new Islam that I don't belong to?" P 107
“Muslims did not get hit on the head one day, then wake up and don niqabs, grow beards, and become fundamentalists. A conscious political process fostered these developments. In some places, the failure to solve basic problems of economic justice, democracy, and human dignity, and legitimate grievances like past colonialism and current military occupation, contributed to creating fertile ground for the fundamentalist project to gain adherents. “
“’They invented the religion for themselves. And they mixed it with the hatred they felt from seeing their fathers who fought France and went to prison during the war of independence mistreated by this rotten state, having no rights.’ Allalou felt there was a lack of awareness about the content of religious texts in Algeria. ‘So they made their own interpretation, made their Qur’an.’” P. 54
“A nation stays alive when its culture stays alive.” P. 72
“Sharif reminds me of a drama that the veteran women’s rights activist Akila Ouared once staged with children in Algeria. The main character decides not to become a suicide bomber because he gets the lead role in a play. He has something beautiful to live for. Because art means he does not face what the cartoonist Slim called Walou a l’horizon: Nothing on the horizon.” P. 80
Bennoune’s story tells of attempts to further art and intellectual thought in the heart of the most extreme Muslim fundamentalists. It is the bravery to go on with the plays, musical performances, journalism, and intellectual activity that fill this book. In their acts, they reveal a culture that has existed long before this extremism took hold. They expose the flimsy arguments behind those that would claim these acts as forbidden as a result of Koran.
Bennoune has a personal connection of those who have shown a light in the darkness as she watched her homeland of Algeria become the next Afghanistan when Muslim fundamentalists took over the country from the inside. It is those who are willing to fight, not with guns, but with art, plays, journalism, and intellectual freedom and courage that demonstrate the most extreme type of bravery. It is a story of those who are willing to be jailed or killed to help light the darkness.
It is a clear eyed view of the complicated nature of the Muslim world. I am Malala demonstrates the same type of courage in the face of Islamic Fundamentalism. In that case, young girls were forbidden to attend school, but she was able to find a way to push back against the extremism, leading to her being almost fatally shot. The book reads very much like Half the Sky in searching for real solutions to the destruction of fundamentalism. It is the multiplication of the voices of peace.
Best Passages
"Were we not Muslims before? Is this the new Islam that I don't belong to?" P 107
“Muslims did not get hit on the head one day, then wake up and don niqabs, grow beards, and become fundamentalists. A conscious political process fostered these developments. In some places, the failure to solve basic problems of economic justice, democracy, and human dignity, and legitimate grievances like past colonialism and current military occupation, contributed to creating fertile ground for the fundamentalist project to gain adherents. “
“’They invented the religion for themselves. And they mixed it with the hatred they felt from seeing their fathers who fought France and went to prison during the war of independence mistreated by this rotten state, having no rights.’ Allalou felt there was a lack of awareness about the content of religious texts in Algeria. ‘So they made their own interpretation, made their Qur’an.’” P. 54
“A nation stays alive when its culture stays alive.” P. 72
“Sharif reminds me of a drama that the veteran women’s rights activist Akila Ouared once staged with children in Algeria. The main character decides not to become a suicide bomber because he gets the lead role in a play. He has something beautiful to live for. Because art means he does not face what the cartoonist Slim called Walou a l’horizon: Nothing on the horizon.” P. 80
laura_sorensen's review against another edition
4.0
There is not much to say about this except that it made me aware (once again) of how ignorant I really am of world affairs and the plight of so many people suffering under fundamentalist Islam.