Customer Reviews

Daughters of Another Path: Experiences of American Women Choosing Islam

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

One review called this book "SAD", another "INACCURATE" and I think what is truly sad and inaccurate is the attitude that these reviewers displayed. It is clear to me that the problem they have is not with this book but with the religion.

The point of this book is to show how families of women who converted to Islam have been affected by their daughters' choices. It is not meant to justify or criticize these choices - just to present them as food for thought and discussion. I think it is the author's hope that her book will open doors of understanding between those daughters and their families so that they can do what families do best - give each other unconditional love and support.

A particular strength of this book is that the women who responded to the survey represent a broad sample of women converts to Islam. I think this is an important contribution because it helps to break the stereotype that women converting to Islam do it only because of their husband's coercion or because they are "lost souls". The book shows that between the two extremes there are many intelligent and open-minded women who have independently chosen the path of Islam.

The only reason I did not give this book 5 stars is because I felt there could have been more input from Muslim women in the *analysis* of the responses. At times it felt like the book was kind of a cut and paste job, with the author's comments here and there.

I think it would also have been a better book had Anway gotten a broader range of input from Islamic scholars on the doctrinal information that she included. I felt that she presented Islam as having a rather narrow/definitive system of beliefs - and those familiar with Islam know that there is a great deal of variation among the scholars and the believers. In fact, the responses to her survey clearly show that the "other path" chosen by these women is not one path, but many paths going in the same direction.

I'm not Muslim myself, but I have long had a lot of love, respect, and admiration for Islam and Muslims (growing up in the Eighties and early Nineties, my family were even friends with a wonderful Iranian family who had fled the Revolution). It answers a lot of questions and concerns of not only the loved ones of women who have become Muslims but also of people who just would like to know more about Islam, particularly modern womens' role in it and why so many American women are choosing to become Muslims. I'd like to consider myself pretty knowledgeable about the faith despite not being a member, but I too ended up learning things I hadn't known about before. It's clear that the women who responded to the survey sent out by Mrs. Anway and her daughter Jodi are very happy in Islam, feel it empowers them instead of, as the media would have people believe, oppresses or represses them, have wonderful marriages (although there were a few respondents who reported having had bad marriages, it was clear that that was the fault of the "men" they had had the misfortune of marrying, not because of the nature of Islam itself), feel very in tune with spiritual matters, and in many cases are happier about themselves and their lives since choosing Islam. It saddens and upsets me to see reviewers giving this book low ratings not because of the content but because they apparently dislike Islam anyway and seem to not believe anything positive about it. Are all of these women talking effusively about how they feel more liberated in hijab than in the type of clothing most American women wear, clothing which causes them to be looked at as a sex object and not a person, how well their husbands treat them, how warmly their in-laws welcomed them, how many rights women have under Islam, just brainwashed liars? That insults everyone's intelligence to claim that this book isn't telling the "truth." The truth is what these women experience and have chosen to share, and if that goes against what you believe about Islam, I guess nothing can convince you that, despite what the media portrays and how certain men in certain cultures have kept their women illiterate to keep them from reading the Koran and learning how many rights women really do have under Islam, Islam really is a religion of love, moderation, and respect and rights for women.

As others have mentioned, there is a cut and paste feel to the text; it would have been even better had there been more scholarly information on Islam, like in-depth explanations of the marriage rituals, the pilgrimage to Mecca (which women btw ARE allowed on, despite the allegations of another reviewer), giving to charity, the various holidays, what's in the various sections of the Koran, types of Muslim schools in the United States, and if it's usual to have a little ceremony or celebration after taking shahada (becoming a Muslim), and if so, what the celebration consists of. And as others have pointed out, a lot of the women surveyed seemed to have become Muslim primarily because of their husbands, or the men who later became their husbands. As a Jew by Choice myself, I share that complaint when reading books about conversion to Judaism; despite popular perception, a lot of people convert to another religion (Islam, Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, etc.) for themselves, while single, finishing the process while still single, not marrying for some time afterwards or even ever. Conversion is always stimulated by much more than a romantic relationship.

When I purchased this book, I was surprised to find that it read more as a personal account of one woman's struggle to come to terms with her daughter's conversion to Islam from Christianity, then as a collection of essays by Islamic women about why they chose to convert. While this aspect of the book exists, I found the excerpted nature of the material, along with the author's piecemeal (and rather non-committal) commentary to leave me flat, wishing for more details about the individual Muslim women and their stories. This book is interesting, but not compelling, and I would recommend it more for people facing the same situation as the author -- committed Christians who are trying to come to terms with a loved one's conversion to the Islamic faith -- than I would to anyone striving to gain a deep understanding of what Islam means to those who have converted.

I read this book some time ago in the hope that it would facilitate improvement in my relations with my parents - relations that deteriorated significantly upon my reversion to Islam (which, by the way, had nothing to do with meeting some foreign muslim male and falling in love.) The book is very helpful in its organized analysis of the issues involved when a 'new' muslim woman wishes to maintain a favorable relationship with her non-muslim family. Its only deficiency is that it does not provide enough perspectives from non-muslims who are atheist, secular, or Jewish, rather than Christian. It also does not deal particularly well with the concept of a Western woman embracing Islam independent of any encouraging or supportive muslim male with whom she has a significant relationship. There is a fundamental assumption that a man is always involved in the life of a muslim woman, which is incorrect - especially for reverts to Islam.

I nevertheless recommend this book to anyone trying to understand why a loved one chose Islam rather than whatever their "heritage" provided for them. I also recommend that born muslims, both male and female, read this book so that they may develop greater compassion for the significant, often extremely heart-wrenching struggles many reverts to Islam experience with the people who raised them, loved them, and cared for them for most of their lives. Any born muslim male who is considering marrying a revert to Islam should definitely read this book - as these issues will also affect him to a certain degree.

I am very impressed that Carol L. Anway (the revert's mother) had the courage to face her fears and actually search for greater understanding in the face of such an emotionally traumatic experience. Her book is of great service to any reader.

The author, Carol Anway, had nothing to gain personally by writing the book except to express her own feelings about what she had observed following her daughter's decision to accept Islam. As a result, Anway took the time to interview several other American Muslim women to gain a broader understanding of some of the perspectives behind their chosen lifestyle change.

This book does a very good job of explaining some of the inner-experiences of a few of the thousands (yes thousands) of American women each year who leave what their parents have taught them and embrace Islam.

No semi-intelligent person can respond to the spread of Islam with vociferous tones after reading about all of these intelligent western women recognized the truth of Islam and accepted it as their way of life. No compulsion, no duress. This is the reality.

For those who have a difficult time intellectually comprehending the expansion of Islam in the west, a much greater phenomenon took place in the early decades of Islam after the death of Prophet Muhammad (SAS). Islam penetrated strongholds of Orthodox Christendom in places like Syria, Palestine, Egypt and Iraq in a very short time, and until today those lands have remained predominantly Muslim. Any doubter of the authenticity of Islamic sources should ask him/herself why it is (and was) that intelligent, free people CHOSE to change their whole cosmology and practice Islam.

Anway's book provides a little insight in order to help one begin to answer that question.

I devoured this book in a day! I am an American who converted 8 months ago and this book could have been about me. I will use this to help my parents understand.

As an American convert to Islam with a Roman Catholic Mother (whom I love DEARLY) this was the best way for me to give her some sense of what other Mothers go through when their daughters embrace Islam. While it is a great read for all, I especially recommend it over and over to women who have embraced Islam, and want to give reassurance to the women who gave them life. It is one of the most comprehensive and compassionate accounts of Islam I have seen to date. It is also one of the few books by a non-Muslim that is uplifting and fair. BUY THIS BOOK!

This is an excellent book and since its written by a non-Muslim author so that gives the edge of it not being biased. If all of us would look at the Muslims without any discrimination and bias and forget about what the media is propagating, we would find that Islam is truly beautiful. It certainly gave me insight about the challenges the new Muslimahs face and the pain they go through in order to follow the true path. I would definitely (and highly) recommend this book to everyone.

What struck me the most about this pioneering work is the author's sincere effort in the way she dealt with a most difficult situation. Had Carol Anway's daughter chosen any other faith but Islam, I very much doubt it would elicit such strong emotions. A mother I do understand the author's initial fears and sentiments, and congratulate her on a most balanced effort that will touch the heart of all mothers, irrespective of their creed.

This is a well written book and I would recommend it to anyone who wishes to rid himself off the evils of prejudice.

Please note, "Daugthers of another Path" is not a study on Islam.

This book is one that a friend told me to give my mother when I converted to Islam. Of course, I read it first! I loved it so much that I kept the copy and bought her another one. It's not a dry text about religion. It's a living breathing collection of the experiences of American women who have chosen Islam as their way of life. It might offer some insight for familes going through this experience.