Serpent of the Nile: Women and Dance in the Arab World

I would like to second everything in Teresa Robert's review. This is a beautiful, wonderful book. But as an actual history of "oriental" dance it lacks nuance and complexity, which is partly due to limited evidence and the author's romantic attachment to the women-centered mythology about this dance. For instance, the text overstates the evidence for connections between the belly dance of the last 150 years and the practices of ancient, goddess worship in presumably more woman-friendly times. I share this same romantic attachment to the dance's feminist roots, but actual history is always more fought and complex. As a result the author over-generalizes and does a incomplete job analyzing the orientalism that feeds so much of the beautiful imagery she includes. In the end, this book is great resource for costuming, late 19th century orientalist accounts of the women's dance, and a vast range of old pictures & photos. Moreover it does a decent job with the early to mid 20th century history and professionalization of the dance. Just look to additional sources for a more well-rounded history, particularly for pre 20th century and regional dances/costuming. I still highly recommend this book to anyone interested in bellydance or orientalism. The images alone are worth the price.

I bought this as a gift for my Mom. She has been belly dancing for well over 25 years. She has traveled to Egypt and Morocco. She is in love with this book! Beautiful pictures, book was in great condition.

I like reading this book, its very through with the information and for my classes in college. It has cool pictures too of how it was in ancient times!

This is the most comprehensive book I've run into on the history of belly dance. It goes all the way back to 75,000 yrs. ago, has gorgeous illustrations and lots of entertaining and fact-filled stories. It's a must for anyone who loves dance.

Fantastic book on the history of dance in the middle east. Beautiful pictures. A must read for anyone interested in the real history of today's "bellydance". Also of interest to women in general.

Dont get me wrong I love the content of the book, however I had owned a copy of the book before that was a larger A4 size book. I was very disappointed when this copy turned up and it is a much smaller book (almost half the size) and so all those lovely images do not have the same impact. Also I preferred the image of the original books cover. The quality of the cover wasn't there either.

Very useful for studies of Arabic Dance. Complete work, with interesting facts and curiosities! Recommended mainly for dancers who want to be acquainted to the history of bellydance.

It arrived in excellent condition and turned out to a great book to read. Starting on the second round right now :)

This book is a classic.The illustrations are beautiful and unique.Wendy Buonaventura is a fountain of information and inspiration.

This was on a reading list I had for course work, I found it to be the most comprehensive guide to the history of belly dance dating back and it has been one of the best belly dance books I've ever bought would highly recommend.

This is one of the most interesting books about Oriental Dance and dancers. There isn't so much written about this subject as it seems to be mainly an oral and practise transmition passed down through generations. It is well researched and an enjoyable read. The added bonus are the lovely illustrations, which for a dancer are a great inspiration. I recommend this book.

Jeder der sich mit orientalischem Tanz beschäftigt, sollte dieses Buch gelesen haben. Es gibt einem Eindrücke in die Arabische Welt. Die Kultur des Orients ist reich an Besonderheiten und Schönheiten, welche dieses Buch der aufmerksamen Leserin gut nahebringt.