Girls of Riyadh

Girls of Riyadh by Rajaa Alsanea tells the story of four young women, Sadeem, Gamrah, Lamees and Mashael, who live in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. The girls are from the wealthy class and are well educated. Each girl is hoping to find love, while navigating strict social rules and customs. I actually had no intention of reading this book, but when I found out my favorite narrator, Kate Reading narrated the book, I decided to give it a shot. Some of the writing and dialogue seems odd, but that may just be the translation (the book was originally published in Arabic). I liked each woman's story and hearing about the Saudi culture, but I had hoped for more growth from the characters. By the end I wanted to shake these women and tell them to stand up for themselves! Forget those men! I had hoped to see them begin to question and challenge the suffocating rules they are forced to live under. But their lives continue in pretty much the same way, which left me a little sad.

Not surprisingly, when the book was originally released in Arabic in 2005, it was banned in Saudi Arabia (the author's home), although it became a bestseller in the Middle East. In the author's note, she says that she hopes readers will realize Saudi Arabia "is a very conservative Islamic society. The women there do live under male dominance. But they are full of hopes and plans and determination and dreams."