Kiraz

I think this is a book that everyone who is interested in romance should read. Is it the best written book? No. It has a few issues like repetitions and some imbalances. However, it was a book that truly taught me more about my relationship and even myself. It had a lot of interesting ideas and facts. I can easily say that it changed the way I see a few things in my life and not every book can accomplish that.

Everyone should read this book.

It definitely has it's flaws and they aren't few. The author tries to criticize Islam by comparing fanatic Muslims to ordinary Christians/Jews. The oppression she talks about is definitely all there in Muslim religion but to say it is non-existent in other religions is just untrue. As she states in her book, the religious texts are about interpretation and she happens to experience the people who interpret one literally and the other more figuratively. There are countries and people who practice Christianity or Judaism with as much passion as the Muslims in her life and she could just as easily see some of the same problems within those religions if she were to compare that to a more relaxed view of Islam.

But this book deserves these 5 stars for everything that happens before it becomes more about the politics and the press. She draws a very vivid picture of life with a Muslim upbringing, with severe oppression against women. The picture she draws is definitely not pretty but it makes you question things no matter what your religion is. More importantly, she does a great job of understanding and explaining what oppression does to a person, to a nation. This book is relevant to everyone because it's not just about a family, a country or a religion that perhaps some don't think about in their daily life, but it's also about the people in our lives, friends and family, that are abused behind closed doors.