About the Book
'All the men I did get to know, every single man of them, has filled me with but one desire: to lift my hand and bring it smashing down on his face. But because I am a woman I have never had the courage to lift my hand. And because I am a prostitute, I hid my fear under layers of make-up'.
Saadawi's searing indictment of society's brutal treatment of women continues to resonate today. This classic novel has been an inspiration to countless people across the world.
2007 recipient of The African Literature Association’s Fonlon-Nichols Award, which is given annually to an African writer for excellence in creative writing and for contributions to the struggles for human rights and freedom of expression
Commendations
'Nawal el Saadawi writes with directness and passion, transforming the systematic brutalisation of peasants and of women in to powerful allegory' – New York Times Book Review
'Scorching' – New Internationalist
'A powerful indictment of the treatment of women in many parts of the Middle East' – Labour Herald
'Woman at Point Zero should begin the long march towards a realistic and sympathetic portrayal of Arab women' – Middle East International
'A dramatic symbolised version of female revolt against the norms of the Arab world' – The Guardian
'El Saadawi has a flair for melodrama and mystery' – International Journal of Middle East Studies