I just finished this book and thoroughly enjoyed it, both her writing style and her subject matter. Yes, she may have gone in somewhat ignorant about many aspects of the lives of Iraqi women but she left with an obvious affection for those same women as well as a deeper understanding of herself. That affection was clearly reciprocated by the Iraqi women she met and lived among. That she lived as they did, was genuinely curious about them as people and made an effort to learn their language negates any criticism of her being a typical, arrogant American. She may have had preconceived notions about the culture but she also seemed perfectly comfortable admitting her mistakes and learning from them. For the reader the book was like being along with the writer and enjoying the journey. I can't think of a much higher compliment to give someone writing about a relatively isolated place over 50 years ago.

This is another great book by this author. I enjoy her story telling ability and feel lucky that she has shared it with us.
I think it's remarkable book. No one can imagine they could have ever have the chance to experience what she did and Iraq will never be the same. It's too bad we have lost so many interesting cultures which had survived since the beginning of mankind. I'm sure it must make her quite sad to see what has happened to Iraq's rich culture during these past 40+ years.

This book is very candid. Elizabeth Fernea describes two years of life in the Shiite village of El Nahara, Iraq. In this tribal village women are completely seperated from the men. They don the traditional Abaya, which covers them from head to feet.

The focus of the book is Fernea's relationship with the women of the village. How they slowly begin to accept her, and finally to befriend her. Yet, as she admits, even after two years, she could not bridge the cultural gap between her and her village friends.

The book is terse, fast paced, and well written. It is also profoundly enlightening. For those who have only a western perspective on women, marriage, and friendship, it should serve as a painless eye-opener.

The on problem that I had with Fernea's writing was its contrived nature. Her account of her problematic acculturation; of the women's struggles and emotions; of the pigrimage to Karbala; and of most every touching situation, seemed artificial. It is as if she is trying, in mechanical fashion, to press the underlying pathos upon us. Something in her prose is a little unbelievable. I could not quite feel like I was in her shoes. There was a certain, ineffable distance between her descriptions and my own feelings of the situation.

I prefer an author who takes you with them, inside them, and makes you feel as if you are a partner on their journey. Fernea rides alone, leaving the reader frustratingly behind.


The above notwithstanding, her book is a terrific, lucid read.

I have never in my life come across a book that has captured me in the way this book has. It's amazing in every sense of the word. The difference between the Middle Eastern world and the world where Elizabeth came from is great. It's definitely the most honest book. The stereo types that people carry with them every day, the assumption that you know a group of people when in reality you never know how different someone might be, and how that can change your life in many wonderful ways. It's definitely educational, informational, and just plain entertaining to read. I have read this book over and over again. I lost it, and I had to buy it again, so that I can...(guess what) read it again!! :)

Even though this book was written in the last mid-century Iraq, the reader comes away with the feeling that it could have been written today, or 2 centuries ago. It's descriptions of the isolation of Iraqi villages, resistance to change, and brief insights into Iraqi politics makes it a book that should be read by those working to rebuild Iraq, those heading to Iraq, and those interested in why Iraq's move to democracy is so difficult.

This book was very useful as an ethnography for the presentation needed for my daughters college cultural anthropology class. It was well written and offered a wonderful insight into the lives of a people we knew very little about. The professor appreciated the donation of the book to her library for students to use in the future.

This book was very useful as an ethnography for the presentation needed for my daughters college cultural anthropology class. It was well written and offered a wonderful insight into the lives of a people we knew very little about. The professor appreciated the donation of the book to her library for students to use in the future.

I have always loved this book - I took Robert Fernea's class at UT in 1973 and this was the textbook. Actually, I did not do so well in the class and I discovered this book after I left college, but it is so well written I read it over and over.

Part of the reason I read it over and over is because I have always been interested in the Middle East, Egypt in particular,and I thought this book was a fascinating peek into domestic life in the ME which really hasn't changed much in 4000 years.

At the time EWF wrote this book the tribal government was still in power in Iraq - it was before the revolution in 1958 that put Saddam Hussein and the Baathits in power. That time was probably idillic compared to Saddam time or even now. Although I think we are trying to give the Iraqis a chance at self governance.

Anyway, I thing one of the big things BJ left out of this book is the female cirumcision issue - I know she must have known about it yet she did not mention it anywhere. She did allude to "honor
killings" when she took her friend with her in a sunset ride with men not related to her friend. She was worried that Laila would be "drowned in the canal" to save the families honor.

I think this is unacceptable in this day and age. Elizabeth should write a new introduction to her book that addresses these issues.

That said, Guest of the Shiek is a beautifully written book, but not indicative of the truth in Iraq at all on any level today.

The Guests of the Sheik is a great ethnography about a newly wed American couple who visit a small Iraqi village called El Nahra, and the American couple's encounters with a third world country. While adapting to the new custom's like the clothing, the Arabic language, the Muslim religion, the celebrations, and getting along with the people. The story was mainly centered around Elizabeth Fernea (the wife) because she does not know the culture well unlike her husband Bob (the husband) who is an anthropologist.
While alot of events are taking place in El Nahra, Elizabeth is has it rough with the women in El Nahra. The women of El Nahra would insult her by saying she is flat chested, insult Elizabeth's religion (Christianity),they made fun of Americans by saying they stop having sex at an early age, making fun of non-polygamy couples in United States and etc. So as the book goes on you have to decide if Elizabeth is breaking away from her prejidism or not. Anyways, there's a lot more drama and details within the book and I highly recommend The Guests of the Sheik especially if you're interested in other cultures.

The Guests of the Sheik is a great ethnography about a newly wed American couple who visit a small Iraqi village called El Nahra, and the American couple's encounters with a third world country. While adapting to the new custom's like the clothing, the Arabic language, the Muslim religion, the celebrations, and getting along with the people. The story was mainly centered around Elizabeth Fernea (the wife) because she does not know the culture well unlike her husband Bob (the husband) who is an anthropologist.
In a summery, the American couple faced challenges (especially Elizabeth) in this new country. Example: Women are forbidden to show their bare skin in public. So the Iraqi women (including Elizabeth) must wear abayas, which is a type of clothing for women that covers the entire body including their heads. This was hard for her to get used to because in America most of us don't cover every inch of our bodies.
The hardest thing for Elizabeth to get used to was the language because Arabic has a different script and it's obviously not like English. Even after spending a year and a half in El Nahra, Elizabeth was not able to speak the language fluently. Religion was not so hard to adapt to for Elizabeth because the Muslim Religion is fundamentally the same as Christianity. However she did had to face the fact that some of the Muslims do not like Christians because they believe they modified the prophets according to Mohammed.
Elizabeth still had to adapt to the celebrations in Iraq. There were two main celebrations. One was Ramadan and Elizabeth was having trouble fasting. The second one was a really long pilgrimage to Mecca. Along with the long journey to Mecca, she had to deal with the praying which through "American Eyes" is constant.
While all of these events are taking place in El Nahra, Elizabeth is having it rough with the women in El Nahra. The women of El Nahra would insult her by saying she is flat chested, insult Elizabeth's culture (Christianity), make fun of Americans by saying they stop having sex at an early age, making fun of non-polygamy couples in United States and etc. Anyways, there's a lot more drama and details within the book and I highly recommend The Guests of the Sheik especially if you're interested in other cultures.

I really loved this book. She travelled as a new bride with her anthropologist husband to Iraq in the 1950's or '60's, I believe. She had so much to learn and go through adapting to a new culture. It's great that she's there because her husband would never have been allowed to talk to the women. They were very segregated, so Ms. Fernea learned all about the half of the society that male anthropologists usually can't even learn about due to lack of access. She made friends, had to relearn how to cook rice (different water amount), and you really get a personal look at the culture. She kept in touch with many of her friends from that time. I can't wait to read her other books.

I highly enjoyed this book, both as a modern American woman, and as a convert to Islam. I learned many things that I didn't know about Shia Islam, and also a bit about the history of Iraq. This book really points out how differently the American culture vs. the Iraqi/Arab Islamic culture views the same things. I plan on reading it again, and mailing it to a girlfriend who also is a convert to Islam.

Reading "Guests of the Sheik" left me in tears. My father was born and raised in southern Iraq right around the time that Elizabeth Warnock Fernea moves there. I grew up on stories from that period and I appreciated getting the women's story from this book, it felt like a complement of the stories I heard in childhood. As I read "Guests of the Sheik" I frequently wondered how I would react if I was in Elizabeth Warnock Fernea shoes. Would I feel at home in that environment? Would I feel as a tourist? I don't know, but I do hope that one day when I do visit Iraq that I will feel as much love for the land and its people as Elizabeth Warnock Fernea did.

i HATE this author because her book only described women in their physical tersm. primarily, whether they were a 'dusky beauty' or otherwise, all women are 'plain' in her mind. She is not enlightened at all about the various challenges women face. she is only concerned with how well they cook, clean & please their husbands. she offered hardly any insight into shiite muslim woman's world. i'm disgusted to find out she is has received so much acclaim as a 'feminist', author & professor (her obsession with superficial design elements may allow her to make so-so films but she should not be a well-received author!). She's an air head. Read this book & you'll see exactly.

Given the attention on the Middle East, and Iraq in particular, this book should be considered a 'must read.' I still find myself wondering what ended up becoming of the village that showed Elizabeth and Robert such hospitality and acceptance before Iraq became a dirty word to Americans. This book inspired me to locate more books written by Elizabeth Warnock Fernea and I anticipate equally enthusiastic reviews of her other open and honest accounts of life in Arab countries. She has had the opportunity to experience Middle Eastern society in a way so few of us could ever hope. I especially appreciate her objectivity and her ability to respect the way of life that so many people in the West automatically view as inferior. This book is truly a treasure for those open-minded enough to want to learn more about life in the Middle East.

Although this book is around fifty years old, it is especially compelling today. Who are the Iraqis? This is a classic description of Iraqi village society, as I suspect it remains today. Fernea spent 2 years in an Iraqi village while her husband was gathering material for his doctoral dissertation there. Elizabeth, or Beeja (BJ) as the Iraqi women call her, is part of the society of women in the village, and her immensely readable account explains much about the gulf that separates Americans from the Muslim world. The account of her pilgrimage with the other village women gives an amazing, hypnotic view into the nature of Islam and its adherents. A well-written, thoughtful, absolutely stunning book.

Elizabeth's unique experiences in Iraq (although somewhat dated at this point) provide fascinating insights into the culture. Given the general American ignorance of Middle Eastern Life, this honest account of a Western woman's experience is enlightening and educational. Once I finished this book, I immediately looked into ordering almost everything else Elizabeth Warnock Fernea wrote!

When Elizabeth Fernea set out for the rural Iraqi village of El Nahra in 1956, she was no trained anthropologist, no great published writer - no, she was, very simply, a newly married woman going to join her anthropologist husband overseas & to help him in his studies. When she left 2 years later, however, she held in her hands the germ of an idea for one of the most finely wrought ethnographies in existence, a book she would call GUESTS OF THE SHEIK.

GUESTS OF THE SHEIK, being fully a product of Fernea's untutored description of her stay among the women of the village, is a deeply personal work, full of small details & emotional shading that might otherwise be omitted from a more scholarly tome. Her own failures & victories - nothing is hidden; the reader learns from her mistakes as SHE learned from them, & typically we find the cause of her blunders to be the values & ethics deeply entrenched in our Western culture. When broken down into its roots, the word `ethnography' literally means `folk story,' and that this is, being both a story of the `women of the veil' in this tiny village in southern Iraq as they were in 1956, and also a story which goes far towards explicating our OWN culture, revealing the sometimes absurd nature of our OWN thoughts & desires. It is not meant to be taken as a universal tale, or some steadfast rule that we must measure ALL Iraqi villages by, but is a description of ONE woman's singular experiences in ONE small, unique village. Fernea's purpose here is simple; to give these women a voice, so that others might hear. In doing so she destroys many preconceived notions about their culture, & paints a vivid picture of these women, their intelligence & their way of life that will not be soon forgotten.

I'm almost halfway through this book-- it was assigned summer reading for school next year. I thought it would just be another boring historical wannabe. Little did I know how wrong I was. Elizabeth Fernea does an amazing job of portraying the way tribal Iraqi women live, work, and look at the world. I just hope the second half of the book is as skillfully portrayed as the first!