The Caged Virgin: An Emancipation Proclamation for Women and Islam

A reviewer

Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a Somali woman who rose to the rank of a parliamentarian in The Netherlands, has achieved pariah status amongst Islamists for her fervent and perfervid criticisms of Islam, capping their anger by apostasy as she has renounced her religion and become an athiest. This book is a collection of her essays on various topics, centering around the treatment of women in Islamic societies. Her criticisms are lucid and damning. Unfortunately, many of her solutions are bromides and very few specific remedies and concrete solutions are offered. Nonetheless, the fact that the problems she elucidates have been brought to the attention of the general US and European publics is a significant service. Unfortunately, as a result of her efforts, the usual barrage of fatwahs calling for her death have been issued and, more unfortunately, the Dutch government has been craven enough to withdraw her security detail on the pretext that she no longer lives in Holland. The book would have benefited from more careful editing. For example, the chapter explaining her background would be better placed at the beginning, rather than in the middle section of the book. Similarly, fact checking would have disclosed a few howlers, such as her statement that Voltaire wrote in the 1800s when he died before the turn of the century. Allowing for that, the book is well worth reading.

3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

Absolutely Mesmerizing !!

Ayaan Hirsi Ali is an incredible, intelligent, and brave woman. I read her memoir, Infidel and am now in the midst of reading the Caged Virgin. I am blown away by her!! A definite Must read for anyone who appreciates a breath of fresh air.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Excellent defence of enlightened values

Ms Ali has written a most useful book. She exposes the dishonesty of those who cry 'Islamophobia' whenever Islam is criticised. She shows how thuggishly orthodox Muslims behave to women, dissenters, Jews and gays. She shows the roots of this intolerance in the pre-medieval thinking of Muhammad and in the all-too-common dogmatic adherence to his outdated writings. In Britain, as in many other countries, we have tamed religion over the centuries, cutting down its power to govern and discipline our lives. We must not now allow orthodox Muslims to impose their views on us, and we should not fail to criticise obscurantism, in whatever guise. We do not need madrassas to propagandise dogma and intolerance. Nor should we put up with the feeble liberalism which grovels to fundamentalism, for example, Ken Livingstone's endorsement of 'radical', ie fundamentalist, Islamic preachers, and George Galloway's Respect party's policy of appeasing the fundamentalists.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

No recommended at all.

If your looking for a book about true Islam this is definitely not a book to read. The author has mixed culture with Islam. But if your just one of those haters who have a sick pleasure of reading books against Islam, go ahead.
*Warning*

0 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Washington Needs to Read This.

While this is not the experience of all Muslims it is the experience of this author.
It is a call to action for Muslim women and an explanation of the behavior of many Muslim men.
I also recommend her autobioraphy Infidel.

somali family

i am a white american muslim woman, married to a somali man and having been muslim before marriage i was able to know the difference between islam and somali culture. i fear the book is islam negitive and not pointing to the truth that it is somali culture that forces mariage to distant relatives and not islam. a warning to all who read what she is speaking of is true but it is somali culture and not islam

0 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Pure Propaganda

This is simply 188 pages of the author's rantings against Islam and her Dutch government and political party. I was more than disappointed since Infidel was so riveting and insightful. I found The Caged Virgin to be a huge time waster.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.