Girls of Riyadh: A Novel (Hardcover)

by Rajaa Alsanea (Author) "Ladies and Gentlemen: You are invited to join me in one of the most explosive scandals and noisiest, wildest all-night parties around..." (more)
Key Phrases: Saudi Arabia, Abu Musa'ed, San Francisco (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Four upper-class Saudi Arabian women negotiate the clash between tradition and the encroaching West in this debut novel by 25-year-old Saudi Alsanea. Though timid by American chick lit standards, it was banned in Saudi Arabia for its scandalous portrayal of secular life. Framed as a series of e-mails sent to the e-subscribers of an Internet group, the story follows an unnamed narrator who recounts the misadventures of her best friends, Gamrah, Lamees, Michelle and Sadeem—all fashionable, educated, wealthy 20-somethings looking for true love. Their world is dominated by prayer, family loyalty and physical modesty, but the voracious consumption of luxury goods (designer name dropping is muted but present) and yearnings for female empowerment are also part of the package. Lines like the talk was as soft as the granules in my daily facial soap or Sadeem was feeling so sad that her chest was constricted in sorrow appear with woeful frequency, and the details about the roles of technology, beauty and Western pop culture in the lives of contemporary Saudi women aren't revelatory. Readers looking for quality Arabic fiction have much better options. (July)
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From Booklist
Four close girlfriends from upper-class Saudi families attend university and medical school in Riyadh and in Chicago and San Francisco. They talk in chat rooms, IM on their mobiles to their boyfriends and each other. But even with all the hip technology, they cannot escape deep-seated oppressive traditions after they return to Riyadh. Sadeem's fiancé dumps her after she has sex with him. Gamrah's husband divorces her after she discovers he is having an affair. Michelle and Faisal adore each other, but he gives her up when his family says so. The Religious Police arrest one couple in a coffee bar. But most families don't need official help to interfere in women's lives. Translated from the Arabic, this debut novel was immediately banned in Saudi Arabia. The 25-year-old Saudi writer (now studying in Chicago but planning to return home) tells it from the inside, complete with the contradictions and betrayals that define daily lfe. The Sex and the City–type drama is fast, wry, witty, and anguished. And so are the politics: "He appreciates her independence. But can't find his." Rochman, Hazel

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Press HC, The (July 5, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1594201218
• ISBN-13: 978-1594201219
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #413,492 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars 1% of saudi girls , September 15, 2007

By	Rana (saudi arabia) - See all my reviews

I'm a Saudi girl, I live in Riyadh and I was really eager to read this book but when I read it I was disappointed in away ..I have to admit it that the book was fun to read but it doesn't relate to Saudi girls that much, a lot of facts that have been mentioned in the book are in someway shocking to even imagine it happening in Saudi Arabia ...
The author is talented but she didn't look at the big picture.This book reflects Saudi girls and what she wrote is 1% of Saudi girls .....
others will read this book and think this is what Saudi girls are ,and what they are facing which is not true ...

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars "I only ask for a small space on the World Wide Web to tell my stories.", July 27, 2007

By	Luan Gaines "luansos" (Dana Point, CA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Behind the shelter of the strict, religiously-dominated society of Saudi Arabia, it is difficult to imagine the daily lives of young women on the cusp of maturity, imagining the ecstasy of first love and the handsome men who will become their husbands. Four such women are members of the "velvet" Riyadh upper class, their every material desire provided, empty hours fueled with romantic fantasies and plans for the future. Well-educated and accomplished, the four, Sadeem, Gamrah, Michelle and Lamees, exist in a rarified atmosphere, feeding on one another's dreams and expectations. Their romantic tribulations are accounted, chapter by chapter, by an anonymous female narrator who posts the unfolding events on the internet. Refusing to disclose her identity, the moderator offers comments and reactions to each phase of her narrative before beginning the next adventure of her sympathetic protagonists.

The girls are similar in background, but dissimilar in their choices and admonitions to one another along the way. What they clearly share is a fascination with the rituals of seduction experienced by marriageable girls of every culture, theirs more rigidly designed to limit exposure to acceptable classes and familiar interests. Yet within this structured framework, the friends manage to indulge in all the excesses of first love, the desperate attraction and yearning for the beloved, interminable phone calls that last until the wee hours of the morning, the timely seduction approved by the society they live in. Each girl manages to fall hopelessly in love, harboring "the dream of marrying the first love of their lives". All but one fail in this pursuit, each enduring the endless anxiety of waiting to be chosen, the rapture of the beloved's acknowledgment and the ultimate pain of love lost.

To this end, their experiences are familiar, but the author subtly manipulates her stories to illustrate the demands of a culture that does not cater to love matches, in most cases the mother of the beloved more influential than the girl the young man desires. Falling into the usual trap of denial in spite of their best intentions, the girls agonize over lost opportunities and poor choices, learning the harsh lessons of young love as they seek to redefine their identities to better protect themselves from failure. Finishing the novel, it is difficult to assign more than a voyeuristic curiosity for the brokenhearted protagonists. Though culture and religion are strictly defined, as well as the young women's unquestioning obedience to family tradition, there is no deeper context, nor does the author claim one. This small peek into a fascinating culture does, however, indicate a universal rite-of-passage for young women everywhere, betrayal, the loss of innocence and the unsustainable yearning that precedes reality. Luan Gaines/2007.

21 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars So-So, July 8, 2007

By	R. Swaney - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I picked up the Girls of Riyadh after hearing about the uproar it caused in Saudi Arabia and for the fact that few pop-fiction books from the Arab world seem to show up in English. It's the story of four women of the "velvet" class of Saudi Arabia and their exploits of marriage, romance, and relationships in their early 20s. The story is narrated as if it occurred on a yahoo group/list serv and provides an interesting look into the secular upper class. It's an interesting read and despite the cultural look the book has a lot of fluff to it. It's an easy and fun read but differs little from young adult fiction in the U.S. (excepting the age group of the women involved). If you're looking for a light "beach read" go for it.