Qur'An and Woman
Fourteen centuries of Islamic thought have produced a legacy of readings of the Qur'an written almost entirely by men. Now, with Qur'an and Woman, Amina Wadud provides a first interpretive reading by a woman, a reading which validates the female voice in the Qur'an and brings it out of the shadows. Muslim progressives have long argued that it is not the religion but patriarchal explication and implementation of the Qur'an that have kept women oppressed. For many, the way to reform is the reexamination and reinterpretation of religious texts.