Goodwin - Price of honor : Muslim women lift the veil of silence on the Islamic world

Always engrossing... Astonishing in its diversity, it sometimes makes you want to weep, sometimes to cheer.

The Irish Times

Goodwins book deals with an important issue without debunking the religion... a fine achievement.

The Asian Times

A remarkable book.

The Sunday Observer (London)

Potent and excellent reporting... should be widely read.

Seymour Martin Lipset, Senior Fellow, Hoover Institute

Chilling... a significant book that gives a voice to the millions of silent and silenced Muslim women.

Kirkus Reviews

Astonishing... necessary... Goodwins interviews both fascinate and disturb... Enhances the understanding of the worlds fastest-growing religion and of its treatment of women.

Library Journal

Jan Goodwins extraordinary interviews and superb reportage bring to life the lives, thoughts, and passions of Muslim women, a world that is usually hidden from us.

Barnett Rubin, political scientist, and director of studies, Center on International Cooperation, New York University

Jan Goodwin is the author of Caught in the Crossfire, an account of her three months with the resistance behind enemy lines during the Afghan-Soviet war. She has reported on the Afghan conflict for nearly two decades, and returned in 2001 to document the changes that took place when the United States removed the Taliban from power. She was executive editor of Ladies Home Journal for a decade before living in the Islamic world for four years. An award-winning journalist based in New York, she now writes for The New York Times Magazine; The Nation; Harpers Bazaar; Marie-Claire; and O, The Oprah Magazine, as well as other national publications.

Also by Jan Goodwin

C AUGHT IN THE C ROSSFIRE

Also by Jan Goodwin

C AUGHT IN THE C ROSSFIRE

PRICE OF
HONOR

Muslim Women
Lift the Veil of Silence
on the Islamic World

REVISED EDITION

JAN GOODWIN

PLUME

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Copyright Jan Goodwin, 1994, 2003

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For
Donald G. and Marilyn B.,
for the greatest gift of all...

P ERHAPS BECAUSE OF THE GENDER segregation in the Islamic world, there is a bonding that occurs more rapidly among women in their culture than it does in the West. I am grateful to have been accepted into that consanguinity, and I admire the honesty, strength, courage, and continued faith of these women, plus their concern for my well-being in their world. It was they who took risks to talk to or assist me, particularly those who live under repressive regimes and whose names may not be openly listed here. I am proud to consider many of them new friends, and sincerely hope that there will not be reprisalsgovernment, extremist, or societalagainst those who permitted their names to be used.

I received enormous support and assistance from many others: journalists, both in the West and in the Islamic world, who opened their files to me and shared their sources and experiences, as well as academics, religious scholars, embassy officials, human rights activists, and interpreters, who gave unstintingly of their time in the countries through which I traveled.

During my odyssey, I also received sustenance for the body and soul at the homes of Lynn and Mustafa, John and Margaret Rodgers; the Rahmat family in Pakistan; David and Diane, Robert L., Bernice, L., and K. in the Gulf; T. and Y. in Jordan; and D. in Israel. Special mention should also go to Asma Jahangirs staff, who worked hard on my behalf, plus Nafisa Hoodbhoy and Tahir Malik; to Faribah, G., and J. in Iran; to Fatima, Faiza, and to S. and A. in countries best left unnamed.

Without the encouragement and nurturing of Rachel Rossow and D.K. during one of lifes bleaker moments, Price of Honor would have been stillborn. Brigitte Georgevichs generosity in volunteering to transcribe dozens of tapes was noble indeed, and her sound editorial judgment invaluable. There was also vital hand-holding and/or advice supplied by Pam Hait, Janet Maughan, Irene Bell, Bill Jones, Sam McGarrity, and Beth Weinhouse, plus the diligence of research assistant Sharon Epperson.

Finally, there is Fredrica Friedman, an editor who believes a writers reach must exceed her grasp and who manages to make the challenge exciting, and her fabulous team: Jordan Pavlin, Eve Yohalem, and Pamela Marshall. And, of course, there is Connie Clausen, an agent who palliates the pain with humor.

THE JOURNEY

The journey of my life
begins from home,
ends at the graveyard.
My life is spent
like a Corpse,
carried on the shoulders
of my father and brother,
husband and son.
Bathed in religion,
attired in customs,
and buried in a grave
of ignorance.

HAND IN HAND

I want to walk beside you

through life

And you!

Want to put a ring in my nose

To pull me along.

Intoxicated by love,

I want to love you

And you!

Want to be god

Making and breaking me.

I want to dance forever in

the courtyard of your heart.

And you!

Singing songs of my helplessness

On the tambourine of my needs,

Want me to dance like a puppet.

I want to become a perfume

And permeate your body

But you!

Want to hide me in your pocket.

I want to cry:

And you!

Want to make me laugh as

you flick your fingers.

A TIYA D AWOOD , S INDHI P OET , P AKISTAN