Jehan Sadat is an extraordinary and courageous woman. I was amazed to read about all of the wonderful programs she created for her country, including cooperatives for women, educational facilities, communities for the disabled, and home communities for orphans. She served tirelessly on local political committees and charitable committees, including Egypt's version of the Red Cross. The fight for women's right to divorce and vote in elections was so important to her that she risked her own family relationships but constantly asking her husband (to his annoyance) to support her agenda until he gave in. Sadat accomplished all these things and much more while raising three children, pursuing a graduate degree in Arabic literature, and supporting her husband, president of Egypt. _A Woman of Egypt_ is not just about Sadat, however; the book discusses Egyptian politics, especially Egypt's relationship to Israel and the US. After reading Sadat's book, I've come to understand the complexities between US-Israel and Arab relations. Sadat is even-handed and fair in assessment of the political situations--she does not condemn her enemies just because they are her enemies. I found her to be an admirable woman and her husband to be an incredible man--the first Muslim leader to actively seek peace with Israel. My favorite line from the book is (paraphrased): They say my husband was ahead of his time, but how can a man who lived only for peace be ahead of his time?

I was living in Saudi Arabia with my husband for several years. Last summer, a German friend of mine gave me this book translated into German. I was completely captivated by the contents of which I knew very little and the interesting way Ms. Sadat wrote about her life. It was definitely a revelation to me how deeply rooted the problems in the Middle East between Egypt and Isreal were already at the time. Whether this my suggestion belongs into this review or not: I wished the book was made more public - I could not find it this past summer anywhere in a bookstore. (Competitive store)only showed the German title. Every American should read the book in order understand the unsurmountable problems between Jews and Arabs in the region to this day.
As to Madame Sadat: What a courageous, dedicated women she was in a Muslim country, combining her deep faith with her progressive ideas.

I've never wrote a review before but I thought A Woman of Egypt was so interesting that I couldn't resist. This book gives you an inside look at a lady who was constantly in the public eye in Egypt and wanted to see change. I thought it very courageous some of the things she did and tried to do in Egypt as the first lady. I believe Jehan Sadat spoke from her heart. You will find it hard to put this book down, I know I did! I have resided in Cairo for some years now and I can see what Jehan Sada was trying to do from a different light. Well done Mrs. Sadat!

Here's the perfect companion to Brian Mitchell's notorious "Flirting With Disaster"! Male-bashing against misogyny... well, turnabout may be fair play, but it doesn't make for enlightened reading. Punch for punch, Francke takes on Mitchell in his own arena. Like her nemesis, she employs carefully selected and suspisciously skewed statistics to prove her point, which is that women are indeed qualified for any and all military roles. And that any and all problems in the gender-integrated service are exclusively the result of male sexism and promiscuity. Francke capably counters Mitchell's employment of anecdote, albeit here favorably toward servicewomen. But she also puts heavy PostFeminist emphasis on "victimization", unwittingly supplying ammo to her opponant's charge that women cannot cope in a "warrior culture". Unlike Mitchell, Francke does not attempt to couch her gender prejudices in a witty writing style. Her book's very angry tone is difficult to read. That's unfortunate. "Ground Zero" has some worthwhile insight into an important topic, but unfortunately most of it gets lost in the "Gender War".

If you want a classic example of a book where the conclusions are written first, then selected facts, statistics, and anecdotes are assembled to support it, this book is for you. If, however, you're looking for an objective assessment of how well gender integration has proceeded (and how far it should proceed), there are far better books around.

Compared to the slightly more recent "A Kinder, Gentler Military" by Stephanie Gutmann, Francke's book pales in comparison. Gutmann, like Francke, is a civilian female who had little contact with the military before researching her topic. She really got her hands dirty, going to army posts, watching basic training firsthand, going aboard Navy ships, talking to the "grunts" all the while. Anyone who deals with ANY military will tell you getting "down and dirty" with enlisted personnel and junior officers is the only way to get straightforward, honest answers, and Gutmann paints a picture that often argues against further forced gender integration.

Francke, on the other hand, appears to have researched her book completely within the confines of the beltway. Her information seems drawn totally from other books and journals, congressional and other government-appointed committees, and other like-minded groups and individuals in the feminist community. Needless to say, her book lacks first-hand credibility and frequently degenerates into outright male-bashing.

Bottom line: Francke's book is every bit as biased and distorted as the ultraconservative Brian Mitchell's works, "Weak Link" and "Women in the Military: Flirting With Disaster." Like most assessments of gender integration issues, Francke's is hopelessly tainted by a left-wing bias that distorts the book from the first page.

Actually, the statistics are what I found most interesting in the book. The author seemed to feel that all the problems that women and the military are having are due to sexism. Other issues, such as the very high attrition rates of women, the much higher injury and disability rates, the much lower availability etc etc are all put down to some sort of sexism. Politically correct, but unfortunately a lot of untruths and truths not stated.