2.5 - 3 stars.
I am not sure, because it was not what i had imagened and thought it would be. But it was interesting still.

Farzana Doctor has written a powerful book showing the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).

Sharifa an American academic joins her husband in India, where he is offered to teach a course, they belong to the Dawoodi-Bohra community, a subsect of the Shia Muslims..

While in India she starts researching the life of her great great grandfather and his wives.

The book shows the string and sometimes shifting relationships.between generations and the practices that sometimes divides us but at the same time connects us.

I would truly recommend this book.

This book was an interesting read. I enjoyed the author's writing style and how she described the characters and the places in the book. I recommend this book to everyone who wants to read more books with Indian characters! I loved the feminist aspect of the book, as well as the political side.

Wow! And this is why I so love Farzana Doctor. As with her prior novels, she writes beautifully, creating complex and conflicted characters who struggle to be true to themselves while challenging social taboos and deeply held beliefs which are engrained within their communities… whether they intend to or because it is the only way they can be true to themselves.

I’ve been teaching about FGM for almost 30 years, and I have to say that this is the first time I can recall coming across it being tackled through fiction. Yes. Yes. Yes. And Farzana has the skills necessary to bring the subject to life, exploring the nuances, and the strength that it takes, on the part of women, to challenge the status quo.

So appropriate that I finish reading this title on the same day that the first Black/SouthAsian woman is declared Vice-President elect in the USA. Empowering.

A Manhattan-based school teacher—Sharifa—is stultified in her work and marriage so a quick trip to Mumbai, a city in India, for eight months is planned to possibly resuscitate the loosening bonds; plus, Sharifa can finally research about her great, great-grandfather who was once an immensely rich philanthropist. But landing in this new city that the main character does have cultural ties to, her family's history doesn't seem to just be an impressive leap of faith landing them huge wealth. Climbing up a tree of family secrets that include, but aren't limited to, the enigma surrounding four women who were once wives of this great, great-grandfather but have been missing from the ancestral lore. the story becomes engrossing in all its sense.

Spotlighting a practice observed, but not limited to, in India and unfortunately ritualistic as well as controversial, Seven dives into laying down a custom called 'khatna' that is—in all its basic meaning yet complex connotations—an act of female genital mutilation. Highlighting a tradition so absurd yet prevalent, the simple writing but careful sequences successfully project varied views yet smoothly disseminate awareness through a sensitive discussion around such a realistic issue. A subtle, tension-filled tone of placing old traditions in a scale of relevance sits well with a narrative voice that isn't accusatory and in fact, understanding of the difficulty in untangling the complexities flowing through centuries.

Complemented with themes like strict gender roles established within the south asian culture, discovering oneself without the stature of a marriage, and authentic, unfiltered reactions to changing antiquated rituals, makes this literary fiction uniquely tender and resilient as well as surprisingly delicate and urgent.

While I am grateful to the author and publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this title, a busy schedule got in the way, and I was unable to read it before it was archived on Netgalley. I will be looking for a physical copy of this title at my local bookstore!

A very very sad and heartbreaking account of a Bohra family that practices Female Genital Mutilation even in this age and day. Our protagonist is a married woman who has a daughter herself. She visits her family back in India after a long time. During that visit, she recovers a suppressed memory that is horrific. The worst part of all that goes on is the level of betrayal that the female children feel when it’s the women who have raised them who are responsible for the tragedy.

I really liked the patient unspooling of the mystery as the protagonist rediscovers the family secret. The ending is bittersweet because it makes you hopeful about the future while also relating the immense amount of trauma that’s already happened.

This book was beautifully written and just so enlightening. I was deeply moved by the story of Sharifia as she embarks on a family trip to India to visit family and to try and save her marriage. What she ends up finding is something more. A story of culture beliefs, love, betrayal and standing up for female rights. This book looks at khatna which is a controversial topic. It explores why khatna is part of the Indian culture and more importantly explores the risks and trauma victims of this face. Farzana Doctor writes with such detail and care, her characters are ones you will care deeply for. Sharifia especially touched me as she copes with her past and is finding her sexuality as a women. So glad I read this book as I walk away with more knowledge and compassion for a topic I knew very little about.

I think it is just personal opinion and preference, but this book was just lacking something for me. I liked the way it was written and I liked the overall writing, but it just didn't get a full 5-stars for me. I did enjoy the cover art; it really pulled me in and made me want to read this book. Surely, other people did love it and I am very thankful to have read it. Trust me, I really wanted to love this one because the premise sounds great and the cover art is so gorgeous!

4.5
Seven is a must read for women everywhere. The topic of female circumcision is not often at the center of a book, but Farzana Doctor puts it all out there with a well-crafted, informative and important novel.

The book had two storylines. I connected more to the current day narrative and felt the writing was beyond reproach. Was Murtu (the husband) a little too perfect? Maybe. Did it disrupt my enjoyment? Not at all. The author was able to put both point of views about the topic on the table as Shari’s two cousins were at odds about the practice. One felt it was about honoring her religion and tradition, while the other felt it was tragic and barbaric. It was interesting to learn about the Dawoodi-Bohra Muslim sect, many who live in America, that still practice this horrific act. Until I read this book, I thought this was only done in Africa.

The secondary storyline is about Shari’s mission to learn about Abdoolally, her great, great grandfather. He was a legendary patriarch as he had many wives, went from rags to riches and was extremely philanthropic. Shari wanted to know why the many marriages, how did he get rich, etc. Through interviews with distant relatives she was able to unleash his story. It was interesting and made a lot of puzzle pieces in her family tree come together, but for me, I still enjoyed the present storyline more.

This was an important read and left me educated on a topic I knew so little about. Just as foot binding was done for hundreds of years in China, women continued the tradition because that was what her family expected from them. This horrific practice of female genital mutilation has been done around the globe for centuries and sadly, it’s still being done in many places. Little girls have no idea what’s happening and the reasons behind it are senseless. It often leads to depression, PTSD, issues with sexual activity, inability to sleep and mental crisis.

The book also touches on family, mother/daughter relationships, feminism, marriage and much more. The book delivers the message that the power of religion and tradition can linger through centuries at the extreme cost to women.

Highly recommend!!

Note: There are some graphic sex scenes.

Quotes I liked:
… while the men might have made the rules, it is the women, women I’ve loved, who’ve enforced them.”

“We forget, we move on. And now I am helping us to remember.”

“If voting changed anything they’d make it illegal.”

“The sadness of others is seeping into my skin. I’ve been perseverating on something that isn’t mine.”

“We know what was passed down in terms of property and wealth, but your posing emotional questions?

The story follows Sharifa, her husband Murtuza and their seven-year-old daughter Zeenat. Sharifa and her husband are both educators, she’s also American-born, and they are members of the Dawoodi-Bohra community, a sect that I had never heard of, but is related to the Shia. More conservative and traditional, the opportunity while Murtuza is teaching in Mumbai gives Sharifa the opportunity to research her great grandfather, while connecting with her extended family and reconnecting with her husband.

While in India, Sharifa is confronted with many questions, and fewer answers that satisfy, about her great grandfather, and has her own exposure to the practice of khatna or female genital mutilation. This practice is prevalent in her own family tree, and the questions, horrors, and the disconnect between her westernized values of women, feminism and self-determination are brought into the mix as the author seeks to give us the story from those tied to traditions and those seeing these horrors for what they are. Many others have written about the conflicts and conundrums posed, but I found the novel so much more powerful for the writing.

Providing a history of both her family and their traditional practices, along with two sides to the argument for and against khatna (and yes, she handles this masterfully and thoughtfully) provide readers with a fuller understanding beyond the knee-jerk “OMG” that is sitting in your head as you read on. Additionally, these conflicts between tradition (and the familiarity and acceptance gained with the adherence to those principles to not ‘make waves’) brings Sharifa into several of her own questions and worries, and for this, we have her husband who is very supportive, perhaps a bit too much for what is expected of a traditional leaning man. As I have zero experience with the practices, but can easily imagine (and empathize with) Sharifa’s questions, upsets, and reactions, the story allows readers to see perspectives not necessarily available in non-fiction, nor ones that cross / confront the family and their separation / conflict about the traditions. A wonderful read that isn’t for everyone –but is handled so beautifully and gently that Doctor brings us all into a little-known religious group and family and see where modern and traditional conflict and coexist, not easily but with a sense of ‘continuity’ that leaves everyone with a better understanding.

I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

Review first appeared at <a href=” https://wp.me/p3OmRo-aOc /” > <a> I am, Indeed </a>

I know that this book will prove difficult to read to many, but if you are willing to give it a little time and effort to understand the huge issue that lies at its core it will be very much worth your sweat.

Sharifa takes a hiatus to join her husband, an academic, who is offered an opportunity to teach a course in India. Returning to their ancestral land brings Sharifa back to her extended family and her two cousins, one of whom is an outspoken feminist and the other is more of a non-questioning traditionalist.

The subject that stirs up trouble when Sharifa gets together with her cousins is the long standing tradition of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). FGM, or Khatna as it is referred to here, is traumatic; it affects women both physically and psychologically. How FGM is tangled with Sharifa's life, and that of her cousins, is a huge spoiler. However, one of the most important issues about FGM, I found, is that it is a cultural tradition that is practiced religiously among some groups, often with the blessing of a dominant patriarchal figure. It is not religion that prerequisite this practice among its followers, but those who want to dominate a particular group sow the tradition as "religious". There are no Islamic texts that back up or even alludes to the practice of FGM as part of its teachings. But the tradition that has been long practiced since pre-Islamic era in African/Asian tribes has sprouted in some sects and groups and found some "holy men" to provide it with a "religious" cover.

But why is the differentiation important between what is religion and what is culture?
Because mistaking what is cultural for what is religious does not help the cause of promoting women's welfare and is used, sometimes deliberately, to promote hate for specific sects and religious groups. Even Sharifa herself is not buying the issue as part of her religion that she likes to maintain its traditions but also maintain her liberal views.

"Like most of our customs, we don't really know why we do things anymore. We just continue them, on and on. Like sheep."

Only that this particular custom is exceptionally harmful. And I liked the way Farzana Doctor explored it through the narrative.

My only problem was that the e-galley I received. seemed to have missing parts. Something about one of Sharifa's ancestors, the one whose story she busies herself with its unearthing while staying in India. I did not really understand how his story is tied down to Sharifa and the whole FGM debate. I don't know if I was missing something because there were "Mumbai, 1900" subtitles throughout the galley and incomplete sentences below the subtitles. It made me feel like I'm missing something.


Thank you NetGalley and Dundurn Press for my e-copy of this book.

I liked this book. The FGM was a bit confronting but still an important topic to discuss in these modern times. A good read all round.

Thank you to the author, Dundurn Press and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

An Indian-American couple heads back to India for a year, with the husband teaching at university, and the wife home-schooling their young daughter and embarking on a research project around a prominent ancestor, who worked his way up from extreme poverty to become a benefactor for schools and hospitals. Before they leave the US, we gain a bit of insight into their relationship as a couple, which has undergone some strain to due the wife's infidelity some years previous.

This story has several interesting intersects: Indian subcontinent and Indian-American, intergenerational, secular and traditional (sect of Islam) faith - some work better than others. Personally, I found the relationships between the characters more interesting than the characters themselves. It took me a while to work out who belonged where, in the vast cast of characters, Although the premise of research into the ancestor provided an entry into the story, I found the fragments of his story interspersed in the text more distracting than anything else. As the story goes on, we realize that one of the central issues is "khatna", which is the term used for FGM, and we also realize that the wife underwent this procedure as a little girl, although she has suppressed her memories of it.

This was a fascinating read, although I would have preferred less time on the ancestor, and more on the wife's self-discovery and the familial repercussions on their anti-FGM activism.

This is an amazing book that gives me chills thinking about it. I knew so little about Female Genital Mutilation but this book presents the tradition from a traditional and modern perspective and allows the reader to feel their way through the process of acceptance or rejection. The writing is beautiful and tasteful. For such a heavy subject I wasn't expecting to feel a sense of wonder and feathery flow that had me reluctant to put the book down. I was actually worried that the book may be heavy-handed in messaging but it wasn't. It was a tale with truth and the characters were flawed and endearing and fascinating.

Sharifa is a strong, believable heroine, exploring her sexuality and examining herself as a woman and mother. Her husband, Murtuza was an amazing and honestly refreshing husband who listened and tried to help her. At first, I was too skeptical about all of the men in this book but he provided the trust and reassurance that good men do exist and the story needed that reminder.

From the beginning, those who are not familiar with India will likely love being immersed in the culture and feel the dangers that stir within the civil unrest. Feminists will love the powerful women who speak out when they have everything to lose. And mothers will hug their daughters close and consider having conversations with them they may otherwise would never think of.

I highly recommend this book. It's educational, entertaining, and leaves you with the most quaking desire to change some traditions forever.

Synopsis:

A rich, soulfully written novel about inheritance and resistance that tests the balance between modern and traditional customs.

When Sharifa accompanies her husband on a marriage-saving trip to India, she thinks that she’s going to research her great-great-grandfather, a wealthy business leader and philanthropist. What captures her imagination is not his rags-to-riches story, but the mystery of his four wives, missing from the family lore. She ends up excavating much more than she had imagined.

Sharifa’s trip coincides with a time of unrest within her insular and conservative religious community, and there is no escaping its politics. A group of feminists is speaking out against khatna, an age-old ritual they insist is female genital cutting. Sharifa’s two favourite cousins are on opposite sides of the debate and she seeks a middle ground. As the issue heats up, Sharifa discovers an unexpected truth and is forced to take a position.

Review: *Trigger warning for the following topics: sexual abuse, female genital mutilation, trauma, sexual trauma, childhood trauma, and infidelity*

This is one of the most incredible books I’ve ever read, and one of my top 10 reads for 2020. I’d live to give away as little as possible from this review so others can experience the book as I did.

This was the first I’d ever learnt about khatna, and I honestly feel like there is a part of me that wished I knew sooner so that I can help to advocate against it. It is a horrific, and terrible tradition amongst communities in India dating back hundreds of years. Doctor has written not only an incredible story of discovery, but intricately and delicately informed the reader of an incredibly sensitive topic. I am already far more educated on the issue of khatna than I was prior to reading this book.

I have so much praise for this book I don’t know where to start. I was hooked from beginning to end. Doctor’s writing had me completely engrossed. The story is descriptive, engaging and informative. For mothers of young girls, aged around seven years, I believe will find this book relatable, particularly the thoughts and feelings of the main character, Shari. Not only is this woman returning to India and on a journey of self discovery whilst learning about the truth of khatna, she is also raising her seven year old daughter. This becomes a particularly scary fact as a reader later on in the book as you empathise with Shari to protect her child from the dangers of khatna while on their trip to India. In the interest of honest and transparency, the only time I was able to put this book down was when the discussions surrounding khatna became too overwhelming for me and I needed a break. However my personal experiences will differ greatly from others so I suspect not everybody will need to take as many breaks as I did. And this was in no way whatsoever a reflection of Doctor’s writing or how she has addressed the sensitive topic. It was for my own personal reasons.

Many of my friends and followers are actively feminist, anti-racist and advocates for equality. This book is one for all of my followers that considers themselves one or all of the aforementioned, as this is not only an incredible book, but an educational tool. I believe all women should read this book eventually during their lifetime. It is phenomenal

Many thanks to Dundurn Press and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my review.

5/5 stars

Wow... this book was definitely out of my comfort zone. It touches on a subject I know very little about and I honestly feel everyone should read it. Women and men need to be aware of FGM. This novel brought it to my attention is a very clever way. The entire time you are hoping and rooting for closure for Sharifa and Murtuza. When you find out why it is called Seven, it will make you gasp... It did for me. The story about Abdoolally was brilliantly woven into the main narrative. I highly recommend. I do not give 5 stars lightly!

An extremely important book featuring FGM.
I still don't understand how somebody can even think FGM is necessary or should still be practised. Another example of how patriarchal society suppresses women's power and sexuality.
I liked the generational and family research idea as plotline, but sometimes I was quite confused following different timelines and that extra something was missing to make it an exceptional reading experience.
However, I can recommend this to anybody who's interested in FGM topics and viewpoints from a different cultural background.

Seven is an intimate, gutsy feminist novel that exposes the lasting, individual impacts of making women’s bodies fodder for displays of religious obeisance. Sharifa and Murtuza’s marriage has settled back into comfortable routines following her emotional affair years prior. Still, Sharifa wrestles with internal uncertainties and biting dissatisfaction. A year-long trip to India provides distractions, as well as an opportunity for her seven-year-old daughter, Zee, to immerse herself in her native culture. Sharifa’s arrival coincides with increasing activism against the practice of khatna, a form of female genital mutilation practiced by some Dawoodi Bohras. Sharifa always believed that she had escaped the knife. Surely she would remember? But her cousins definitely remember. One of them, Fatema, is one of the leading activists against khatna. Against her will, Sharifa gets drawn into the fight against khatna—which means uncovering family history that she didn’t want to dig up. It’s pretty ironic considering that she meant to dig up even deeper family history.
Each character feels unique and genuine. Each one grapples with their own conflicts of identity, culture, tradition, and imperfection, including the ones we meet in flashbacks to Sharifa’s ancestors living in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
It was incredible. I can’t praise this book highly enough.

Sharifa is an Indian American. Like many immigrants, Sharifa and her family have mixed and matched traditional Dawoodi Bohra traditions with American ones. She and her husband met and married for love—but they chose each other from the small pool of Bohra Indians in New York. Their daughter is taught at a secular school, but is still taught about the Bohra Muslim faith. As Seven, by Farzana Doctor, opens, Sharifa and her family are preparing to return to Mumbai for a year. Like so many others, ends up discovering herself on the great subcontinent while intending to do something else.

Before we follow Sharifa to India, we get a good look underneath the surface of her marriage to Murtuza. Four years earlier, Sharifa nearly cheated on her husband. They’ve patched things up, but there is still a bit of mistrust and hurt in their relationship. It doesn’t help that Sharifa is unable to orgasm when they have sex. Because Murtuza and Sharifa can’t completely connect—and because Sharifa doesn’t understand why she can never reach completion—there’s a massive elephant in the room that keeps them from fully repairing their relationship. When Sharifa and co. arrive in Mumbai and she begins her family history project (researching the actual history behind a nineteenth century ancestor who has become legend), she learns what the elephant really is.

Sharifa’s arrival coincides with increasing activism against the practice of khatna, a form of female genital mutilation practiced by some Dawoodi Bohras. Sharifa always believed that she had escaped the knife. Surely she would remember? But her cousins definitely remember. One of them, Fatema, is one of the leading activists against khatna. Against her will, Sharifa gets drawn into the fight against khatna—which means uncovering family history that she didn’t want to dig up. It’s pretty ironic considering that she meant to dig up even deeper family history.

Seven offers a deep dive not only into the Dawoodi Bohra, but into family betrayals and the complicated psychology of FGM survivors. The way Sharifa and her family talk, part of being Bohra is not questioning tradition and not bucking the status quo. They keep themselves to themselves. The problem with not questioning (and I love that Sharifa’s daughter constantly asks why when she sees new Bohra customs and none of the adults can answer the question) is that it means things fester until they erupt, with all kinds of messy psychological consequences.

Doctor relates all of this with sympathy and open-mindedness. The thing about Seven puzzles me is the fragmentary interstitial chapters that contain dates and snatches of sentences about Sharifa’s legendary ancestor. It’s entirely possible that the fragments were just an error in my advanced reader copy. I hope it was just a mistake, because the fragments were so small that I found them irritating more than intriguing. If it is a mistake, I’m sorry I missed out on seeing how life has changed or not changed for the Bohra in the hundred years between Sharifa’s life and the life of her great-great-great-grandfather. (I think I got the number of greats right.)