Virgins of Paradise (Bookcassette(r) Edition)

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Summary: One of the most intriguing novels on women in the Mid East!
Review: A great book!!! I couldn't put it down. Everyone I gave it to read it, loved it, and passed it on to their friends. I even keep a couple extra copies around for future gifts!

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Summary: Egyptian Forsyte Saga
Review: Barbara Wood's epic tale of the Egyptian Rasheeds masterfully allows the Western reader a glimpse into the lives of a Muslim family and the trials and tribulations that women universally endure as the so-called lesser sex.

The saga unfolds from many perspectives, both male and female. Amira, the family matriarch, married at thirteen and accustomed to wearing the veil and remaining within the walls of her domain on Virgins of Paradise Street in Cairo, retains a secret past locked deep within her that shames her with its elusive mystery, yet at the same time endows her with the strength to rule her family with a loving decisiveness that never fails her. Ibrahim, her son, wants a son of his own so badly, that he curses God and spends the rest of his life wondering if his ill-spoken words have cursed his ability to sire male children. Yasmina, Ibrahim's daughter, follows the mandates her grandmother dictates, marries and has a son, but decides to follow her own heart and become a doctor. Carmelia, her sister, pursues a different path; flouting Amira's old-fashioned ways, she becomes a famous Eastern dancer. Zachariah, the house's adopted son, inherits too much of his biological father's dreamy idealism, seeking the paradise of God rather than its earthly alternative. All the Rasheeds struggle against the times, the old ways, a newer thinking and what they intrinsically know is morally correct.

Wood weaves her family epic with informative facts about the Middle East. The reader witnesses a female circumcision firsthand along with the perspectives of the participating women. The powerlessness of woman within a society where she wields little power outside the walls of the harem is illustrated through the events experienced by most of the women characters. Wood manages to adequately portray these women as religiously fervent and yet striving for personal freedom without being overly preachy. Her research into the Arab world is to be commended---meeting the Rasheeds amounts to exposing yourself to an otherwise alien world.

There are times when Wood repeats herself. One has to wonder if certain parts of the story are written out of sequence and never edited or if Wood thinks that after so many pages have been digested a gentle reminder of what transpired 150 pages back is needed.

Like other such 'BIG' novels, Virgins of Paradise has its predictable moments, but for the most part, it is an enjoyable and not overly literary story in which to delve--especially if, like myself, you listen to the unabridged audio version, wonderfully performed by Brilliance Corporation in a 19 hour format.

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Summary: Provides interesting insight into an Islamic family
Review: Having lived in the Islamic world for several years, I found this book entertaining but also quite insightful to the culture of family life dominated by men. The author fully explores a core group of characters and uses satellite characters to flesh out the family saga. I never had read anything by Barbara Wood, but after reading this book, I have ordered more of her works. The bottom line: entertaining to read, AND I learned something.

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Summary: Just delicious
Review: I can describe this book with a single word DELICIOUS. You learn about the past and present of Egypt and you can see that there is not a big difference. A wonderful book to read.

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Summary: This book is in my top 10 list of all time.
Review: I finished this book in one day. Once I started I could not put it down

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Summary: One of the best books I had read in a long time!!
Review: I found this book in a used book store and once I began reading it I was transported to another time and another place! Barbara Wood has a gift for storytelling--the research she must do to capture every detail of the time is incredible. I searched for her other books and they are just as great--Domina, The Dreaming, The Prophetess, Soul Flame. You will enjoy!!

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Summary: Enchanting
Review: I have read some of Barbara Wood's books, but Virgins of Paradise is the crown jewel of her writings. The story takes us back to 1945, to Egypt at the close of the Second World War and a powerful family from the highest circles of nobility, the Rasheeds. They are the friends of royalty, rich and influential, and their every move is judged by the gravitas of their status. But under the veil of wealth and power lies a web of secrets even thicker than blood whose disclosure could spell the downfall of the family. As time goes by and tremendous incidents ravage Egypt, winds of war, treachery, dishonor, scandal, and forbidden love descend upon the once peaceful house of the Rasheeds on Virgins of Paradise Street. Flashes of events and voices echo from the past and as if by the hand of fate toss the family from one predicament into another. The patriarch of the Rasheeds, Ali is dead, but his posthumous influence remains strong. While Ibrahim his son is the nominal head of the house, it is Amira, Ali's widow, who is the eminence grise, the "invisible" hand that guides the family and holds its deepest secrets. Amira keeps secrets of her own and towards the end she embarks on a journey to uncover the mystery of her origins, which has been haunting her for decades. Tradition and Muslim law play a big role in the unfolding of the story's events, and many points in the culture are discussed and compared with Western culture in a fascinating way through the voices of the characters themselves. Although the two main characters are supposed to be Yasmina and Camelia, they are only two of the lively characters (like Alice and Nefissa) who all contribute to the colorfulness of this story. What is most touching though is that no matter how far the characters travel to escape their past (California, France, England, Lebanon...), their fates are always tied to that quaint home on Virgins of Paradise Street, the witness to generations of Rasheeds, throbbing with their memories, their mysteries, their fears, and their secrets. Barbara Wood's writing is exuberant and vivid to the point that for days after reading the book, I felt a sense of nostalgia for a home I had never seen in my life. The exotic smells and tastes and colors that make up Cairo seem to waft out of the book's pages. Barbara Wood's Virgins of Paradise is not merely a book to be read but an enchanting experience to be lived and felt.

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Summary: Wonderful!
Review: I loved this book. Everytime I know a friend who needs to escape into another world, I search the internet to find Virgins of Paradise to buy for her. I read a lot and this has always been one of my favorite books. Don't miss it! It takes you to a different world and when you're finished reading it, you'll wish she had written a sequel.

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Summary: Never forgotten
Review: I read this fantastic book at least four years ago and it is one of the few that I continually recommend and praise. I love this richly layered novel that envelops you in a world so foreign to our Western one. I think that reading this book helped me to appreciate my station in life and to become involved again in a time and life so remote from ours.

Rating:
Summary: Never forgotten
Review: I read this fantastic book at least four years ago and it is one of the few that I continually recommend and praise. I love this richly layered novel that envelops you in a world so foreign to our Western one. I think that reading this book helped me to appreciate my station in life and to become involved again in a time and life so remote from ours.