Challenging Identities: Muslim Women in Australia (Book Review‪)‬

Challenging Identities: Muslim Women in Australia. 2010 Shahram Akbarzadeh, ed. Melbourne, Melbourne University Press (Islamic Studies Series 5). 196 pages. $39,99 (Paperback). ISBN 978-0-522-85715-3 Challenging Identities is a comprehensive text that explores the experiences of Muslim women in Australia. The book is located within the post 'September 11' and 'Bali bombings' context. This is a time during which Muslims came under increasing and often hostile scrutiny from various sections of the global community. The 'condition' of Muslim women became a rallying point for all sorts of causes and at times served to mask what were often strong prejudicial views against Islam. Whereas non-Muslims, and some Muslim women, tend to problematise many aspects of the Muslim culture, particularly gender dynamics, there has been, over the years, an increase in the number of Muslim voices that seek to offer counter-narratives to popular representations of Muslim women as either hapless victims of patriarchy or willing co-participants in the oppression of women.