books_coffees_wines's review against another edition
4.0
“By speaking up, by telling their stories, women employ one of their most potent weapons against widespread hate and hypocrisy: words”.
Synopsis:
“In Morocco, the only acceptable sexual activity is between a man and his wife. Where all forms of extra-marital sex, homosexuality and prostitution are not only morally frowned upon but also punishable by law, women appear to have two options: be a virgin, or be a wife.”
This was an eye-opening book and hard to put down; I read it in two sittings. It appears that the strict laws are creating a culture of lying, people are afraid to reveal their relationships to the outside world (even public displays of affection can result in imprisonment). “Do what you wish, but never talk about it” seemed to be a repeated theme in the stories of these women.
One thing that becomes apparent is that these laws impact the poorer communities to a far greater extent than the wealthy. The rich can often pay their way out of imprisonment, the privileged are more likely to be able to get away with relationships outside of wedlock, the poor are not. As Slimani states, “to defend sexual rights is directly to defend human rights”.
One law that shocked me is that once couples divorce, the husband automatically gets custody of the children.
I enjoyed reading these stories from a wide range of women and how Moroccan laws impact them. They are courageous to have shared these, it was an excellent book of essays. If you're looking for a short yet important non-fiction read, then pick this one up.
Synopsis:
“In Morocco, the only acceptable sexual activity is between a man and his wife. Where all forms of extra-marital sex, homosexuality and prostitution are not only morally frowned upon but also punishable by law, women appear to have two options: be a virgin, or be a wife.”
This was an eye-opening book and hard to put down; I read it in two sittings. It appears that the strict laws are creating a culture of lying, people are afraid to reveal their relationships to the outside world (even public displays of affection can result in imprisonment). “Do what you wish, but never talk about it” seemed to be a repeated theme in the stories of these women.
One thing that becomes apparent is that these laws impact the poorer communities to a far greater extent than the wealthy. The rich can often pay their way out of imprisonment, the privileged are more likely to be able to get away with relationships outside of wedlock, the poor are not. As Slimani states, “to defend sexual rights is directly to defend human rights”.
One law that shocked me is that once couples divorce, the husband automatically gets custody of the children.
I enjoyed reading these stories from a wide range of women and how Moroccan laws impact them. They are courageous to have shared these, it was an excellent book of essays. If you're looking for a short yet important non-fiction read, then pick this one up.
asc6x's review against another edition
3.0
EVERYFUCKINGTIME, when i am reading a book, i have a lot of things id really want to say out loud, and once i actually i try to write a review, i forget everything.
This was an interesting take on sexuality in an oppressive society, i think leïla could have done a better job, because most of her writing felt "raw", but im glad that such a book exists out there.
This was an interesting take on sexuality in an oppressive society, i think leïla could have done a better job, because most of her writing felt "raw", but im glad that such a book exists out there.
remigves's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
4.0
anneke_b's review against another edition
4.0
Interesting collection of stories, and descriptions about sex in Moroccan culture. One of the few books that I actually read to my husband, and we really had some wonderful conversations about it.
Enlightening, though I definitely could see the author had a certain political message going into this as well.
Enlightening, though I definitely could see the author had a certain political message going into this as well.
patjam's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
leonmorinpriest's review against another edition
5.0
I read this book mainly cause I come from a background that stigmatizes sex and women seem to be the brunt of suffering from this stigmatization.
It’s really hard to discuss topics like these especially in countries where a PDA is cause for jail time.
It’s especially hard when religion influences culture and society and I’ve seen many people be openly anti-religion or islamaphobic when discussing these topics.
I honestly didn’t feel like this book implied such an attack on religion nor was it advocating a change of values but moreso the freedom of choice. Again, I’m no expert on the topic mainly just another woman who has experienced similar mindsets and forced conformity. However it’s nice to see a first where there is a logical way of discussing these issues
Overall, I found the book more to be a collection of how women in Morocco discuss their relationship with sex as well as the authors own motivations behind speaking about these topics.
I try not to look at other reviews because I feel like everyone’s opinion is valid in how they take this book. Maybe it isn’t perfect but I feel like the message has truly resonated with me
It’s really hard to discuss topics like these especially in countries where a PDA is cause for jail time.
It’s especially hard when religion influences culture and society and I’ve seen many people be openly anti-religion or islamaphobic when discussing these topics.
I honestly didn’t feel like this book implied such an attack on religion nor was it advocating a change of values but moreso the freedom of choice. Again, I’m no expert on the topic mainly just another woman who has experienced similar mindsets and forced conformity. However it’s nice to see a first where there is a logical way of discussing these issues
Overall, I found the book more to be a collection of how women in Morocco discuss their relationship with sex as well as the authors own motivations behind speaking about these topics.
I try not to look at other reviews because I feel like everyone’s opinion is valid in how they take this book. Maybe it isn’t perfect but I feel like the message has truly resonated with me