This is not a story about victims. It is not the story of thoughtful Westerners out to save the foreign underprivileged. Instead, "Half the Sky" is an account of some of the greatest heroes of our generation — women in Asia and Africa who are fighting for the right to own their own bodies, and the economic and social prosperity that has and will come from their self-empowerment.
Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, who previously co-won a Pulitzer for their coverage of China, have produced a non-fiction book of the highest order. "Half the Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity for Women Worldwide" covers international, accepted sex slavery, which occurs on a larger scale than the 19th century slave trade, maternal mortality ratios that leave families destroyed and widespread violence against women.
As readers of Kristof's column for the New York Times know, he cares deeply about gender issues. The book allows both of its authors to demonstrate why the problems women face are among the greatest moral and economic challenges of our time, and the arguments the authors make are some of the most important arguments one could read this year.
It is crucial not to dismiss these topics as mere pet causes that lack the weight of more important matters. These are problems bound to the social, economic and political well-being of nations, and improving such problems can improve all aspects of a society.
Kristof and WuDunn create an arresting work through the use of masterful prose. As every reader of a bad textbook knows, poor writing can make even the most interesting topics seem dry. What sets "Half the Sky" apart is its focus on personal stories and its insistence that the way to learn about gender problems is not to study them from a removed standpoint, but to listen to the people living through them. The authors succeed enormously; they make many of their points through these stories, creating a piece of investigative journalism both simultaneously in scope and minute in focus. The depth of the authors' knowledge is apparent, and it brings strength and authority to their work.
This authority is key to their rigorously documented, nuanced look at oppression. "Half the Sky" never devolves into simple arguments of oppressor and oppressed, good and evil. Instead, the authors make a point of revealing how deeply embedded the problems are. For example, there are ‘willing' prostitutes who have been broken into submission at a young age as well as girls who beg for genital cutting and mothers who encourage it. In order to learn from past mistakes, Kristof and WuDunn frankly portray the failed attempts of well-meaning foreigners to address these problems.
Kristof and WuDunn stress solutions that empower individuals, hoping that such attempts will affect the status of women in rural areas in ways that laws cannot. Outsiders cannot stop these crises by throwing money at them, a point "Half the Sky" is fully aware of. Previous failures led to the author's well-founded belief, stemming from their experience on the ground, that focused aid and education are the two things most likely to bring about change.
Kristof and WuDunn choose not to simplify complex issues. Instead, they have chosen to end each chapter with a case study of a small, concrete action taken by someone who made a difference. These include Mukhtar Mai, a Pakistani woman in southern Punjab who revitalized her entire community by starting a school despite constant threats of rape and violence. The book concludes that the most effective way to change deeply rooted gender mores is to give a woman the tools she needs to advance her position in society.
More than anything, the book celebrates education. "Half the Sky" shows that women in the most oppressive of situations have lifted themselves up through education and pushed the boundaries of human courage, ingenuity and strength.
