The New Woman in Uzbekistan

"Marianne Kamp has written a real tour de force in The New Woman in Uzbekistan. [This] is an important book both for specialists and general readers. Kamp has courageously dived into some of the most controversial and moving stories of Central Asian women's lives. The result is a rich, multifaceted book that makes for fascinating reading."

"Kamp's book is a remarkable study of societal changes triggered by Russian and Soviet rule in Central Asia. The focus on women's subjectivity and her admirable use of oral interviews against a backdrop of solid historical research expose the untapped potential of oral history: we get fascinating insights into Uzbek society during the first two decades of Soviet rule."

"A nuanced history of a complex era in Uzbekistan. . . . .highly [recommended] for Central Asian, Middle Eastern, women's studies, and oral history courses."

"The book's target audience is likely to be scholars, but speaking from experience, advanced undergraduates will find the ideas interesting and the writing accessible. This work will reward anyone who is interested in ideas about self-construction and gendered representations in the public sphere."

"This prize-winning and passionate book deserves a place on the bookshelf of any serious historian of Central Asia or specialist in Islamic women's studies. It is an inventive attempt to recover women's voices and explore the complexities of female agency; it breaks new ground in exploring Central Asian women's subjectivity . . . .This study sets a standard for feminist analysis of Central Asia; courses in women's studies, gender theory, and Islamic, Soviet, or oral history should consider assigning this accessible, well-written volume."

"Kamp's work makes compelling reading and offers important insights not only for specialists on Central Asia but also for those studying the expansion of Soviet power to the periphery. . . . Her engagement of other important works on the region is sure to spark a lively debate over the motors and nature of social change."

"An irreplaceable contribution to scholarly understanding of Central Asian culture and history."

"Marianne Kamp's study of Uzbek women's experiences of the late twentieth century..is an extremely welcome addition to the literature on women in Central Asia..a very accessible book that will appeal to wide readership, from historians to women's studies scholars and students alike."

"This book makes numerous original contributions, particularly in its collection of Uzbek women's life stories, which are used to highlight women's subjectivity and rational decisions about when and if to resist their subordination to men."

"This is a fine scholarly study on veiling. . . the book is certainly a useful addition to the literature covering the pro and cons of veiling. Moreover, it is relevant and timely."

"A very important contribution to our understanding of women emancipation policy from the late Tsarist period to WWII, and more widely to the history of Sovietization in the 1930s."

"Kamp's work represents the best of a new crop of scholarship on Central Asia. This is surely a book that will set the standard in Central Asian women's history for a long time to come."

"Through Kamp's well—written account, we learn to view Central Asian women not just as victims—-of patriarchal societies and the Soviet coercive apparatus—-but also as agents in their own right."