Daring to Drive
A Saudi Woman's Awakening
New York : Simon & Schuster, 2017.
Format: Book
Edition: First Simon & Schuster hardcover edition.
Description: x, 289 pages ; 24 cm
A ferociously intimate memoir by a devout woman from a modest family in Saudi Arabia who became the unexpected leader of a courageous movement to support women's right to drive.
Manal al-Sharif grew up in Mecca the second daughter of a taxi driver, born the year fundamentalism took hold. In her adolescence, she was a religious radical, melting her brother's boy band cassettes in the oven because music was haram : forbidden by Islamic law. But what a difference an education can make. By her twenties she was a computer security engineer, one of few women working in a desert compound that resembled suburban America. That's when the Saudi kingdom's contradictions became too much to bear: she was labeled a slut for chatting with male colleagues, her teenage brother chaperoned her on a business trip, and while she kept a car in her garage, she was forbidden from driving down city streets behind the wheel.
Daring to Drive is the fiercely intimate memoir of an accidental activist, a powerfully vivid story of a young Muslim woman who stood up to a kingdom of men--and won. Writing on the cusp of history, Manal offers a rare glimpse into the lives of women in Saudi Arabia today. Her memoir is a remarkable celebration of resilience in the face of tyranny, the extraordinary power of education and female solidarity, and the difficulties, absurdities, and joys of making your voice heard.
Manal al-Sharif grew up in Mecca the second daughter of a taxi driver, born the year fundamentalism took hold. In her adolescence, she was a religious radical, melting her brother's boy band cassettes in the oven because music was haram : forbidden by Islamic law. But what a difference an education can make. By her twenties she was a computer security engineer, one of few women working in a desert compound that resembled suburban America. That's when the Saudi kingdom's contradictions became too much to bear: she was labeled a slut for chatting with male colleagues, her teenage brother chaperoned her on a business trip, and while she kept a car in her garage, she was forbidden from driving down city streets behind the wheel.
Daring to Drive is the fiercely intimate memoir of an accidental activist, a powerfully vivid story of a young Muslim woman who stood up to a kingdom of men--and won. Writing on the cusp of history, Manal offers a rare glimpse into the lives of women in Saudi Arabia today. Her memoir is a remarkable celebration of resilience in the face of tyranny, the extraordinary power of education and female solidarity, and the difficulties, absurdities, and joys of making your voice heard.
Contents:
A country of one king and millions of queens -- Cockroaches and prison bars -- Dirty girls -- Mecca under siege -- Behind the veil -- My Barbie is murdered -- The forbidden satellite dish -- Employed and homeless -- Love and the falafel man -- Live free or die -- Driving while female -- In the kingdom of Saudi men -- Aboya and the king -- The rain starts with a single drop.
Subjects:
Sharif, Manal, 1979-
Women -- Saudi Arabia -- Biography.
Women political activists -- Biography.
Women automobile drivers -- Saudi Arabia -- Biography.
Sharif, Manal, 1979-
Women -- Saudi Arabia -- Biography.
Women political activists -- Biography.
Women automobile drivers -- Saudi Arabia -- Biography.
Target Audience: 990L
ISBN:
9781476793023
Availability | |||
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Call Number | Location | Shelf Location | Status |
BIOGRAPHY Sharif, Manal | Main (Downtown) | Third Level, Biography | In |