Kristof is not a leftist, and Half the Sky is not written from a left/feminist perspective. Neverthess, I'm glad it was written and I'm glad that the PBS documentary was made because it is focusing more attention on global human rights abuses that target women and girls.
To be sure, as a democratic socialist feminist with an MA in anthropology I have differences with his overall perspective. Still, I ultimately think that his work will do more good than harm.