The Hidden Face of Eve

The most recognisable name in Egyptian and Middle Eastern feminism … poignant, penetrating yet simple. * Library Journal *A harrowing exposé of the abuse of women in the Arab world * London Review of Books *Nawal El Saadawi has become something of a heroine for many young Arab women … a cry from the heart * MESA Bulletin *The leading spokeswoman on the status of women in the Arab world * The Guardian *Nawal El Saadawi speaks directly on behalf of many women in the Third World and the daily struggles they face * West Africa *The Arab world’s leading feminist and iconoclast * Fedwa Malti-Davis *

Nawal El Saadawi was born in a village outside Cairo, Egypt, in 1931. A trained medical doctor, she wrote landmark works on the oppression of Arab women including Woman at Point Zero (1973), God Dies by the Nile (1976) and The Hidden Face of Eve (1977). After being imprisoned by Anwar Sadat’s government for criticising the regime, she founded the Arab Women’s Solidarity Association in 1982, before being forced into exile in later life due to death threats by religious extremists. She returned to Egypt in 1996, running for president in 2005 until government persecution forced her to withdraw. Saadawi died in Egypt in 2021.