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Infidel
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 949.2073092
EAN: 9780743289696
ISBN: 0743289692
Label: Free Press
Manufacturer: Free Press
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 384
Publication Date: April 01, 2008
Publisher: Free Press
Studio: Free Press
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Editorial Review:
In this profoundly affecting memoir from the internationally renowned author of The Caged Virgin, Ayaan Hirsi Ali tells her astonishing life story, from her traditional Muslim childhood in Somalia, Saudi Arabia, and Kenya, to her intellectual awakening and activism in the Netherlands, and her current life under armed guard in the West.
One of today's most admired and controversial political figures, Ayaan Hirsi Ali burst into international headlines following an Islamist's murder of her colleague, Theo van Gogh, with whom she made the movie Submission.
Infidel is the eagerly awaited story of the coming of age of this elegant, distinguished -- and sometimes reviled -- political superstar and champion of free speech. With a gimlet eye and measured, often ironic, voice, Hirsi Ali recounts the evolution of her beliefs, her ironclad will, and her extraordinary resolve to fight injustice done in the name of religion. Raised in a strict Muslim family and extended clan, Hirsi Ali survived civil war, female mutilation, brutal beatings, adolescence as a devout believer during the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood, and life in four troubled, unstable countries largely ruled by despots. In her early twenties, she escaped from a forced marriage and sought asylum in the Netherlands, where she earned a college degree in political science, tried to help her tragically depressed sister adjust to the West, and fought for the rights of Muslim immigrant women and the reform of Islam as a member of Parliament. Even though she is under constant threat -- demonized by reactionary Islamists and politicians, disowned by her father, and expelled from her family and clan -- she refuses to be silenced.
Ultimately a celebration of triumph over adversity, Hirsi Ali's story tells how a bright little girl evolved out of dutiful obedience to become an outspoken, pioneering freedom fighter. As Western governments struggle to balance democratic ideals with religious pressures, no story could be timelier or more significant.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Ayaan Hirsi Ali -- Brilliant, Beautiful and Brave
Ayaan Hirsi Ali takes the reader on a journey. A journey of discovery from obscurity to fame, from the muslim brotherhood to atheism, from the backbreaking yokes of third world tribalism and feudalism to Western philosophy and the Enlightenment. Ms. Ali did not intend for this to happen. It all happened TO her, and she lays out her case for turning her back on her family, her cultural heritage and her religion in a brutally honest, often heart-wrenching manner. If the West has any doubts about ... Read More
Rating: - Brilliant...a 5-star-plus masterpiece!
I am certainly not one to gush over books. Authors are human, and write from their own biased perspectives. But every so often a book comes along that gives my own biased perspective a nice swift kick, and that definitely applies here. When it comes to religious beliefs and practices, I confess that I am one of those civilized types that gives every organized religion the benefit of the doubt. Or, I should say, I WAS one of those types until I read this amazing and thoroughly chilling tale. Ms. ... Read More
Rating: - Inspiring story from a very brave woman
It takes a lot of courage to stand up against the views of your family, community, country, religion. Not many people would put their own lives in danger for the benefit of helping others. Ayaan's story is unique and her style very easy to read. It is very inspiring!
Rating:  - Still have some questions
This was a very interesting read and I was intrigued by the author's life from childhood until her escape to the Nethelands and subsequent involvement in politics there. However, I question Ali's complete disavowel of Islam and wonder if she, instead, should be condemning the oppressive cultural behaviors of Muslim extremists instead of the religion as a whole. For this reason, I would have liked a more in depth analysis of the positions that, ultimately, led to her leaving the Parliment and the ... Read More
Rating: - great book
Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali was a great read. I was overwhelmed by her courage in moving out of a culture she had grown up in because it stifled her sense of self as a women and as an intellectual person who couldn't bear the restraints that her culture had put on her. To give up family and home and be any alien who had to get a whole new life together and then to shine in her choice, makes it a must read for any woman in that kind of situation. I was so impressed I want to read more of her works.
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