This review originally appeared on the book review blog: Just One More Pa(i)ge.

“Women hold up half the sky.” -Chinese Proverb

This book is so important. So. Important. And I readily admit that I am completely and totally biased. This is exactly what I spent two full years studying while getting my MPH: Maternal and Child Health. But that bias does not make it any less important. It also doesn’t make it any less devastating to read. But that familiar mix of heartbreak and hope that was my Master’s degree is something that absolutely everyone should experience. And should periodically remind themselves of. Because even just a year out of school has done so much to distance me from that. I thank this book for the reminder and I fully recommend that everyone read it. Whether learning for the first time or refreshing, take a deep breath, do yourself a favor, and jump into Half the Sky.

I picked this up because after being out of school for about a year, I was really missing my MCH people. Well, this definitely brought it back. Kristof and WuDunn use a mix of individual stories, statistics and study results, and their own experiences to present the world with information on the deplorable conditions for so many women around the world. And they try to balance that with the myriad of people trying to help, the ways they’ve been successful, and suggestions for how to anyone (you) can get involved. The primary issues touched on are human trafficking and sexual slavery, maternal mortality (death during or after childbirth), lack of education for women, female genital cutting and mutilation (also, misleadingly, dubbed female circumcision), and the general misogyny that leads to physical, sexual, and emotional abuses of women in many forms that are so often defended by “tradition.” The stories presented represent communities and countries from all over the world, from Africa to the Middle East to Southeast Asia, and show the variety of oppression and submission that women face worldwide. (*Notably missing is any indication that things in the developed world are not perfect - I realize that it's perhaps a different type of oppression and is not the focal point of this book, but it is a disservice to women in those countries to not recognize it at all.*)  Many suggestions for explanations for these abuses are presented, along with examples of groups and individuals that have made a difference fighting against them, with a focus on local and grassroots level work. Like I said, a mix of heartbreak and hope that is unique, I feel, to those who work with women and children.

This book was written in an incredibly straightforward and hard-hitting way. And at times, the “high-brow” snark was real (and deserved). Although compassion was used when speaking with and about the women of the world, no punches were pulled in condemning their abusers (both those directly abusing and those who give tacit approval with their lack of efforts to intervene). There were some times where I felt statistics or examples were given with a little too much judgement, not towards individuals necessarily (though sometimes, especially towards the aggressors), but more towards the government and institutions that allow this state of things. And while I generally agree with the sentiment, perhaps that type of shame is not the best method of convincing them to take a stand. Plus, it's incredibly paternalistic for those from the "west" to speak like that. Then again, appearance really matters for governments and institutions... It is just important to make sure that the distinction in clear – the shame is on the larger groups and not the individuals, definitely never on the victims, but also often not even the aggressors. Recognizing the cultural and environmental aspects that lead to these conditions is key. Many of the stories were hard to hear, but mixed in with the almost textbook-like presentation of facts and figures, it was a necessary hard to hear piece. Personalizing and humanizing these situations, as they even mention at one point in the book, is what connects readers and others to a cause. It’s what, in the end, really makes the difference in the world's level of care and investment.

I personally loved many of the prevention and other public health heavy approaches, as opposed to treatment/reaction only, that were highlighted and discussed. For example, consider increased education as a baseline for better overall outcomes for women: smarter family planning, greater ability to contribute economically to the home (also read about microfinance programs), empowerment to stand up for themselves against physical/sexual abuses, and so many more. In many cases, programs that provide lunches, uniforms or sanitary products to female students will help convince their families to keep them in school and thus, in turn, give them the education that will help prevent any number of negative outcomes. Yes. So much yes. At the same time, there was a lot of assumption of privilege on behalf of the developed world (primarily Americans), and their capacity to afford spending time and money on this. Again though, on the whole, I respect that this book is about the terrible conditions for women internationally, not domestically, and thus the focus is elsewhere. I also liked how many local and indigenous women were highlighted for their good work in these areas, though I feel like perhaps the extent to which international aid was given credit was too high. It’s a joint effort, for sure, as both international resources and local knowledge and ideas are important and necessary to make positive changes for women worldwide, and there is a balance there. But there’s a fine line and I think often the focus skewed too much to the international aid. Perhaps that was the point though – this book was not written for the women living these lives, they already know their pain. Rather it was written for “westerners” to show us they we can help affect change, even if something seems like such an institution that nothing we do will ever change it. It just needs to be a priority.

Women’s rights are human rights. And it should be worth it, to all of us, everywhere, to fight to make that statement a reality for all women. This book put a human face on many issues that we too easily dismiss because they do not hit close enough to home. This book will open your eyes, hard. And your eyes should be opened. Bottom line, the content is what's important. So whether there are better written books on this topic out there (because there were many issues with the delivery), or not, reading this is better than not knowing about these issues at all. As a human, it should be worth it to you to fight for women, for humans, everywhere. That is something we should constantly be reminded of. Let us all work to ensure that one day, women truly do hold up half the sky.