Syrian feminist activist Bouthaina Shaaban revisits Both Right and Left Handed, her widely admired book based on interviews with Lebanese, Syrian, Palestinian, and Algerian women (IUP, 1991). Arab women from varied social and economic backgrounds express a wide range of opinions on the traditions and institutions that shape their lives. Themes include the impact of war and the emancipating role of women as freedom fighters, the misinterpretation of Islamic laws and social values that underlies male-dominated institutions in Arab countries, the sacrifices of Arab women to keep the family unit together, and such previously taboo issues as lesbian relationships and premarital sex. In her new introduction, Shaaban recounts the significant progress that Arab women have made in pursuing opportunities for education and professional and political advancement during the last 20 years. Equally passionate is Shaaban's personal account of her journey from childhood in an obscure Syrian village to representing her country as a top-ranking political figure while continuing to fight for female equality.

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Spanning more than a century, this systematic study brings to the forefront a dazzling array of novels by Arab women writers. Bouthaina Shaaban's analysis ranges from the work of Zaynab Fawwaz, published at the end of the nineteenth century, to that of Sahar Khalifah and Najwa Barakat, published at the cusp of the twenty-first. The novels discussed reflect not only specifically Arab concerns, but also those that are universally relevant to women. Perhaps most notably, Shaaban makes it abundantly clear that Arab women were pioneers in the creation of the Arab novel - though until now they have been little known - and that the development of this literary genre occurred very much in tandem with the changing role of women in Arab countries....