Infidel

Well, since everyone enjoyed Larry's post on female genital mutilation, I'd thought I'd recommend a book that gives and interesting look into the subject.  Infidel  by Ayaan Hirsi Ali is a very interesting and engaging memoir about a Somalian woman who grows up in 
Somalia, Kenya, and Ethiopia, eventually ending up in Holland to become a member of parliament.  
She details her experiences growing up Muslim, her own genital mutilation, arranged marriages,  
integrating into Western culture, and finally giving up on Islam.  She does not hold back on detail or 
her opinion.  This works to create a very interesting read, but can be frustrating when it seems as 
though she generalizes her own experience to represent the experiences of all Muslim women in Africa.  
Either she or her editor wanted to use her experiences educate Westerners on "what happens" 
to women where she's from, but she's not writing about a group of women, she's writing about herself.  
Considering that most Somlian women don't leave the country and those who do don't end up as 
members of parliament, I would say her experience is anything but generalizable. If you can get past 
the "let me educate you Westerners about the horrors of the rest of the world" subtext, it's an exceptional
book about an exceptional person.  I definitely recommend it.

Happy Birthday To Kill a Mockingbird...Birthday Party?

So I read this article in the New York Times about all the parties going on for the 50th anniversary of the publication of To Kill a Mockingbird.  I feel like we have to jump on the bandwagon and organize an FBC to celebrate the book.  Let's pick a date, plan on re-reading it (or at least watching the movie)!

Also call me a nit-pick but the article mentions Monroeville, AL is also called the "literary capital of Alabama" because Harper Lee grew up there but fails to mention Truman Capote also lived there (NEXT DOOR TO HARPER LEE) which I imagine also adds to its literary posterity.  I've been on quite a Capote kick lately so reading To Kill a Mockingbird this summer works in quite nicely since Harper Lee was working on this during the time she was helping Truman Capote write In Cold Blood.  They were extremely close childhood friends and in To Kill a Mockingbird Scout is meant to represent Lee and Dill is meant to represent Capote.  Capote's first novel Other Voices, Other Rooms also has a character based on Lee. SO MANY CONNECTIONS!!!

Book Review: The Help

 I just finished reading The Help by Kathryn Stockett last night.  Overall it’s well written, easy to read, and kept me interested.  It did not revolutionize any ideas I had about race relations in 1960’s South or women’s roles in society at the time, but it was a nice story about some interesting women.  Apparently, Stockett’s inspiration for the book was the relationship she had with her housekeeper growing up in Jackson, MS and her desire to become a writer in New York.  The book is written from the narratives of a young white society woman and two black housekeepers.  

Why Does this Exist? : A new segment

 So I am oftentimes cruising the web and come across services or products that seem either wrong, offensive, useless, or just overall bat shit crazy.  Hence the birth of a new tag called "Why Does this Exist?".  The first subject of this series is the dating website, Classy Asian Ladies,  "where quality single men connect with upscale Asian women living in the US".  The website is very proud to tell you that all women on the site are legal residents in the U.S., some even born here, yet still maintain the values of "the East" (upchuck here...and wipe).  While much is said on the site about the women, there is nothing said about the men leading me to believe this is only a service for men and not for"Classy Asian Ladies" to find love.  The most disturbing part is the tab that explains "Why Asian Women?". Here's a little snippet to explain this question of all ages: 

Mural on 42nd street: controvesry on race and sex

I read about artist Sofia Maldonado's mural on 42nd street in New York (Times Square) at Jezebel.com today  and was at a loss for words.  Now I grew up in Colorado, live in New Orleans, and have been to New York only a handful of times...so my expertise on the city is non-existent and I will not attempt to understand or try to relate to a New Yorker's point of view (at risk of using Sex and the City as a reference for how women in New York are).  However, as an outsider I have trouble seeing what all the fuss is about.  If I were to go to the article written for Jungle Gym Magazine  about the mural, I never would have seen the controversy.  Now this could be a good or a bad thing I guess.  Those opposed to the mural would say that I am racist and feeding into stereotypical images of Black and Latina women.  Those in support of the mural would say that I am rational and don't automatically see depictions of urban Black and Latina women and equate them to prostitutes or poverty, and even if they are prostitutes or are poor automatically assume they aren't strong women.  I'm pretty sure impoverished women are probably some of the strongest women in the world, but I also don't know what in this mural would indicate that these women are poor in the first place.  I just think they look cool (nerd alert)! If you can't tell I'm on the side of those who support the mural.  One of the funniest quotes about the mural comes from Fox news (so take with a grain of salt, I'm pretty sure this is not what most New Yorkers think of the mural) Tony Herbet says, "Women should be depicted with cell phones and briefcases, that's to show the professionalism of how women have broken the glass ceiling to accomplish what they've accomplished, not to come back to this."  WHAT....THE....F$#&?!?!  I can't speak for all women, but having a cell phone does not represent the women's lib movement to me.  Also, I don't carry a brief case, so obviously I'm not "accomplished".  I don't even understand what the "come back to this" comment even means...these are very contemporary images.  Where were these women in the past? Interestingly enough, the driving force of opposition behind the mural is social networking group The Black Professionals Meetup Group and Fox News.  An interesting pairing to say the least.