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Denis MacEoin, Rituals in Babism and Bahaʾism , Pembroke Persian Papers, Vol. 2, published in association with the Centre of Middle Eastern Studies, University of Cambridge (London: British Academic Press, 1994). Pp. 204.

the story as told in Genesis and subsequent Jewish legendary material were important in authenticating the ancient Egyptian historical and cultural setting of the story and in demonstrating the extent to which Joseph had become Egyptianized after being sold into slavery. What is remarkable is the irrelevance of these critical issues to the Quranic retelling of the tale. Goldman argues that in the Quranic retelling it is the didactic force of the tale that is important, not the tale's Egyptian background. In fact, it is "this didactic intent [that] distinguishes Qur'anic tales as a genre" (p. 73). The book of Genesis concludes with Joseph's impending death and with his brothers taking an oath that they will ultimately lay him to rest in Canaan, the land of his forefathers. The Wiles of Women/The Wiles of Men concludes in the same way. Like most sacred figures, Joseph became a far more potent figure of veneration after his death than he had been while he was alive. Hence, in Chapter 6 ("Joseph's Bones: Linking Egypt and Canaan") Goldman studies this phenomenon through an examination of Jewish, Samaritan, and Muslim veneration of Joseph and his tomb at Shechem-Nablus (Joshua 24:32). Unlike the Biblical account, in which the Joseph saga serves as the crucial link between the Hebrew patriarchal age and the occupation of Canaan under Moses' lieutenant Joshua, the Qur'an makes no mention of Joseph's death or his burial. Such issues simply are not important to the didactic nature of the sura. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that we find a secondary Muslim tradition that Joseph's tomb may be located in the Haram al-Khalil in Hebron. Goldman speculates that such a tradition may have developed because of the persistence of an aggadic tradition that Joseph had wanted to be buried in Hebron or in response to Samaritan claims that Joseph's tomb could be found in their home region of Shechem-Nablus. Finally, no review would be complete without a few comments on the production of the book itself. The choice of black-and-white reproductions over color plates is regrettably understandable for purposes of making the book affordable, and inconsistencies in the transliteration will annoy only specialists. However, it is truly unfortunate that Goldman's accessible and readable prose is marred by SUNY Press's sometimes shoddy editing of the text. Production flaws aside, The Wiles of Women/The Wiles of Men is a welcome and thoughtprovoking contribution to our understanding of the enduring vitality of the Joseph story in Middle Eastern cultures and of the importance it played in post-biblical Jewish and medieval Muslim communities' understanding of themselves, of their proper relationship with their coreligionists, with God, and of His expectations of and relationship with His human creation. The Wiles of Women/The Wiles of Men will prove rewarding for students of the Hebrew Bible, the Qur'an, comparative religion, literature, folklore, and gender studies alike.