Culturally Speaking:

Most Recent Book Review - June 2009

Ignorance is a powerful thing - it can lead otherwise rational people to believe falsehoods like 'all Muslims are terrorists' or 'Islam promotes holy war against the white devil'.  "Culturally Speaking: Promoting Cross-Cultural Awareness in a Post-9/11 World" is a guide to better promoting understanding throughout the world, emphasizing that greater understanding between nations is necessary for a true resolution to the War on Terror. So many Americans don't understand the Arab world and will accept anything they hear out of ignorance, which author Mary Coons labels as the true enemy. "Culturally Speaking" is a must read for those who want to combat ignorance with rationality and informed critical thinking."

Reviewer: Helen Dumont
The Midwest Book Review

Armchair Interviews

Bahrain is a flat, arid archipelago of thirty-three islands in the Arabian Gulf east of Saudi Arabia and west of Iran. The entire country is roughly three and a half times the size of Washington, D.C., and is one of the  more moderate countries in the Middle East. One may argue that as Bahrain is not a typical Arab or Muslim country, the value of comparing American and Bahraini attitudes is diminished from the perspective of comparing Arab or Muslim attitudes with American ones. While this observation may be true, there is still  merit in comparing different attitudes across cultures no matter how these cultures fit within the wider framework.

Coons explores eleven myths Americans have of Bahrainis (or Arabs in general) and eleven myths that Bahrainis have of Americans. Interspersed among these myths are explanations that either report on activities that promote cross-cultural awareness or provide background on Arabs in general (e.g., On Islam, Arab attitudes toward marriage and women, etc.) The chapters are based on interviews with ordinary people in both Bahrain and the United States.

While not all the myths are busted, the text does delve deeper and provides a more complete explanation of the issues discussed. The background sections (those not addressing a specific myth) seem to have been written for the benefit of American readers. One may argue that some of the notions explored vary from scholarly perspectives, but readers need to realize that these notions are not based on scholarship, but on the perceptions of ordinary citizens.

Issues covered cover the gambit from religion (only Islam is covered). Gender relationships, clothing and Arab-American relations are covered from both perspectives. (As expected, 9/11 does have a significant contribution.) American foreign policy in the Middle East and the perception that Arabs are terrorists are also covered. One could argue that this list does not provide "both sides" of an issue or that this list is not extensive. However, for a book like this one, the author has a choice of either covering only the "top" issues (leaving out some perspectives) or narrowing the book's scope to cover all relevant perspectives. Coons has chosen to do the former.

Reviewer: Muhammed Hassanali of Armchair Interviews

Rating: A five-star look at differences     

Anonymous Customer Review from Canada

Rating: ***** 5 stars

I highly recommend this book. There are millions of misconceptions that Americans have of the Muslim world. This book brings light to the fact that most of the misconceptions spring from the few radicals within the Muslim world. As this book says, "overcoming ignorance is the key".