Ethnic violence is a widespread concern, but we know very little about the exact mechanisms of coexistence in neighborhoods around the world where peace between groups is maintained in the midst of civil strife. In this ethnographic study of a multi-ethnic middle-class residential building in Karachi, Pakistan, Ring said that peace is the product of relentless daily work, much of it has been carried out in daggers, or women's vacuum.

The daily rhythms of the building are shaped by gender, ethnic / rural / urban tensions, national culture and competing interpretations of Islam. Women's exchange among families - visiting, borrowing, helping, and managing men's anger are forms of creative employment that regulate and differentiate ethnic differences.

Linking the psychological sensitivities of "tension" with the anthropological views of the social importance of exchange, Ring argues that social-cultural tension has not been resolved as much as women's practices. Through a very vivid and personal account of the author's interactions with her Pakistani neighbors and relatives and other residents of the city, Zinana recounts a rare glimpse into contemporary urban life in a Muslim society..

I want that book.