ebolles's Full Review: Taslima Nasrin - Meyebela: My Bengali Girlhood
Meyebela is the childhood memoir of a girl born in Bangladesh in the early 1960s. The author eventually became a physician and activist and she has published 18 books in Bengali, some of which like this one, have only recently been translated into English. The book is unapologetic in its criticism of fundamentalist Islam and Bengali Muslim culture. This is why the author, Taslima Nasrin (sometimes referred to as the female Salman Rushdie), had a death fatwa issued on her by the religious leaders of Bangladesh. Nasrin draws particular attention to the way in which the culture she grew up in permitted and often encouraged mistreatment of women. The memoir covers her childhood until about age 12 as well as some of events that affected her family before she was born.
A mother damaged by a fundamentalist Muslim culture
The two most powerful people in Nasrin’s life were her parents and they usually pulled her rather harshly in opposite directions. Her mother, trapped in a miserable marriage with an unfaithful husband, turns to religion to find some solace. She fights with her daughter over wearing a burkha, tries to dissuade her from doing her homework and say prayers instead, as she believes school is unimportant and the only thing that matters is being a devout Muslim. Her pathetic attempts to comfort herself with religion lead to her visiting a local “holy man” who is constantly surrounded by followers, mostly women, who feed him and bring him money, believing it will guarantee them a place in heaven. This man even coerces woman to sleep with him under the guise of it being somehow holy. Nasrin, relating these events through a child’s eyes, sees the hypocrisy and senselessness in the situation even then.
Less religious but harsh father
Some of my favorite passages are when Nasrin recounts her asking questions of her mother -- logical, rational questions about Islam -- and her mother is unable to give a satisfying answer. Even at that young age, Nasrin is so clearly unlike her mother, instead she is much more like her rational, far less religious father. He is a doctor who values education above all else and pushes his children to do well in school. He is not a kind figure however, as he is tyrannical and often cruel to his family, particularly his wife. Nasrin's mother is also often cruel, although also capable of tenderness to a degree her father isn't.
Repeated tragedies
There are many tragic moments in this book. When Nasrin reaches puberty she is suddenly no longer allowed outside to play, or step outside at all unless she is going to school or going somewhere with her mother. After the freedom of childhood, this existence is only bearable to her because she is able to escape the house to go to school regularly. Many other girls her age were not allowed to school. Most were married off by age 14, often to men old enough to be their grandfathers, most never able to gain further education even if the family was well off. Nasrin herself is sexually abused by two of her uncles and occasionally beaten by her father and mother.
Disowning a child
The tragedies are not only about women. One particularly horrifying incident that occurred was when Nasrin older brother ran off to marry a woman after his father forbade it, on the grounds that his son needed to concentrate on his studies to become a doctor like him, and marry later. The father or Baba in Bengali drags his son (called Dada, for oldest brother in Bengali) back home, literally chains him in his room and refuses to allow him food for four days, trying to force him to leave his wife. Dada refuses and eventually Baba lets him go, but disowns him. His mother is powerless during all this and can only sneak visits to her son and daughter-in-law later.
Rich culture details, powerful voice
Nasrin writes, often poetically, of the food, the people, the schools, even the wars that affected her family and neighbors during her childhood. Her voice comes across as honest, sympathetic, and the reader gets a clear portrait of her as a spirited, precocious child struggling to keep her individuality strong in the face of so many obstacles. She comes across as a survivor, finding gentleness ands beauty where she can.
Minor Imperfections
This book really deserves four and half stars because the flaws are minor. Sometimes, especially in the first part of the book, the narrative leaps forward and back in time, which was slightly disorienting at times. The translation also seemed a bit off in a few places. I found that the thematic organization of the book improved as it went along. None of these flaws detracted very much for me.
Other Criticism
Some say this memoir presents an uneven view of Islam in Bengali culture, and it is true that there is very little good portrayed about the religion. But this is not a news report or a textbook but one woman's personal experience. Nasrin refuses to accept the view often put forward that discrimination against women either doesn’t exist in Muslim countries or if it does, it has nothing to do with Islam. Although she presents an indictment of fundamentalist Islam, much of what she criticizes can be extended to other fundamentalist religions. (It is hard to miss the parallels between much of what horrifies many people -- Western and non-Western alike -- about extremist Islam: death fatwas, stonings, etc. and historic Christianity)
Overall, Meyebela is a unique and well-written memoir that also provides a better understanding of Bengali Muslim culture and the senselessness of religious extremism in general. This story will make many female readers especially feel profoundly grateful for having been born into a society with a secular government. Even so, at times this world that seems so far removed from modern Western culture can be unexpectedly and disturbingly similar. A worthwhile read.
In this powerful evocation of a Muslim childhood, famed Bengali dissident Taslima Nasrin revisits her early years--from her auspicious birth on a Musl...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.