Finding Nouf Essay

Finding Nouf Essay

  • Submitted By: brennans123
  • Date Submitted: 06/12/2010 3:48 PM
  • Category: English
  • Words: 1030
  • Page: 5
  • Views: 1

Lifting the Veil

In today's modern literature, novels need to be socially relevant, engaging, and meaningful. Sadly, this need is not often met in reality, and we often find ourselves reading mindless parchment with no literary or social benefit. However, when a novel such as Finding Nouf finds its way onto the shelves, there may yet be hope for the literary world. Finding Nouf by Zoe Ferraris is a greatly detailed mystery set in contemporary Saudi Arabia. The story centres on the mysterious disappearance of a young Saudi girl by the name of Nouf Ash Shrawi, the unfortunate discovery of her remains, and a forbidden quest for answers. The book’s protagonist, Nayirash-Sharqi, who refuses to believe the lies he is fed, takes on this journey. Finding Nouf also showcases the gender-biased society of the Middle East, removes the veil from our assumptions, and reveals the deeper truth beneath these situations. It is one of the most important and well-written novels of 2008. The skillful narrative, social commentary on the Middle East, and unique characters strongly support this statement.
One of the novel’s greatest features is the way it captures the gender-biased society of the Middle East perfectly, a culture, which us as North Americans are not completely aware of. People who take the time to read this novel may develop a better understanding of foreign customs and comprehension. As well as being taught that the world is a whole lot bigger than the bubble we choose to live in. Finding Nouf is interesting because it is more or less a Trojan horse of a novel. The driving plot and mystery draws in readers for it's entertainment value, but as you read the novel little things come up that you might not have initially expected. The novel teaches us all about the social status of women in the Middle East, which to many is a big surprise. The media projects the situation to a certain extent, but this novel really takes it home. In a country where women with jobs are...

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