Midnight Tales: A Womans Journey through the Middle East, by Rosina-Fawzia
al-Rawi, 2005 Based on the actual travels of Rosina-Fawzia al-Rawi, Midnight Tales: A Womans Journey Through the Middle East is a collection of personal essays that follows Al-Rawi as she journeys from souks of Baghdad to the bustling streets of Damascus. Al- Rawis encounters in the Middle East are intertwined with her love of poetry, Sufism, knowledge, and history. The reader walks away from the book entertained, but also well informed on a variety of historical items pertaining to the Middle East. This collection is highly recommend for travel buffs, those aspiring to embark on such a journey, or even students eager to learn about the Middle East and its customs, traditions, and history in an unconventional and exciting way.
For Scholars
Midnight Tales: A Womans Journey Through the Middle East is not just an entertaining read; it is also laced with rich historiographical information relating back to al-Rawis encounters country by country. Such information is exemplified in al-Rawis explanation of the city of Baghdad and its formation in 100 AH under al-Mansour, the second Abbasid caliph. While some of her accounts evoke Orientalist themes, al-Rawi presents Middle Eastern culture from an inside perspective, referencing history, memory, and the making of modern Arab culture.
Primary Research Applications Regional identity in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, Kuwait, Egypt, and the Emirates Arab nationalism Sarah Iskander
Womens rights in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, Kuwait, Egypt, and the Emirates Womens customs in the Emirates Anthropology Sufism Arabic poetry
Further Reading in the Oman Library (among other texts):
Writing Off the Beaten Track Reflections on the Meaning of Travel and Culture in the Middle East, Judith Caesar, 2002 Paradise Beneath Her Feet: How Women are Transforming the Middle East, Isobel Coleman, 2010 The Veil: Women Writers on its History, Lore, and Politics, Jennifer Heath, 2008 Readjusting Perspectives: Nationalism, Religion and Culture, Center for the Study of the Modern Arab World, Saint Josephs University (Beirut), 1983 Women of the Arab World: The Coming Challenge: Papers of the Arab Women's Solidarity Association Conference, edited by Nahid Toubia, 1988 Family, Gender, and Population in the Middle East: Policies in Context, Carla Makhlouf Obermeyer, 1995 The Liberation of Women and The New Woman: Two Documents in the History of Egyptian Feminism, Qasim Amin, 2000