Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Infidel
Book Review: A rigorously honest book
Summary: 5 Stars
I agree with everyone who admires this book. I would add that it comes across as a rigorously honest account of Ayaan Hirsi Ali's life and experiences, and that there isn't the slightest trace of resentment in its pages. The author could have castigated those who made her suffer, down to her violent mother. Instead, she recounts as objectively as possible the events of her life, never casting a harsh judgment on anyone, just letting the facts speak for themselves, and even showing compassion for those who hurt her and providing excuses for their behavior. The most unbearably moving moment for me was the account of the death of Ayaan Hirsi Ali's sister. This is also a remarkably well written book, which must impress anyone who reads it. It's up to the readers to reach their own conclusions about the value of the message that it contains. Provided they keep an open mind, I cannot imagine it would be difficult to agree with the author's main points. Highly recommended, a must read, especially for anyone who is interested in learning more about some of the cultures in which Islam thrives.Book Review: A serial liar
Summary: 1 Stars
Too bad her interview on The BBC was not included with her book. It exposed her as the serial liar, illegal alien in The Netherlands that she is/was. As an avowed atheist, she can only speak for herself and not Islam. Her "tales" while horrific are the product of a backwards culture, and a patriarchal society. Her story is no different from that of any woman, in any religion. In short, woman get crapped on all the time. Is it fair? H*ll no, but is her story anymore worthy than any Christian or Jewish woman simply because she claims to be a Muslim? Nope.Book Review: A story of personal courage and transformation; a story of the evil of Islam
Summary: 5 Stars
The face of reason confronts Dark Age primitiveness. That summarizes Infidel, the autobiography of Ayaan Hirsi Ali. The face of reason is hers, the beautiful, intransigent face that appears on the cover of her book.
Ms. Ali was born in Somalia. She grew up in that country, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia and Kenya. Her father fought for a better government in Somalia but he, along with all of the people close to her, were Muslims. Primitivism meant female genital circumcision, which she endured without anesthesia at age 6. Primitivism meant Muslim Brotherhood imams preaching fundamentalism. Primitivism meant women wearing restrictive hidjabs. Primitivism meant having to endure forced marriages and beatings from your husband, if he so chose. Primitivism meant an oppressive clan network that reached all the way into European countries.
Rejecting the primitiveness of her background, Infidel is the story of Ms. Ali's personal unfolding, and her discovery of the Western values of free speech, the right to one's own life, and religious freedom. By the end of the book, Ms. Ali declares herself an infidel, since she rejects the Islamic faith that she grew up with. She rejects all religious faith. Step by step over the course of her life, Infidel shows her make the conclusions that brought reason into her life.
For that, for the ideas she publicly stated as a member of Parliament in Holland, for a movie she made, and ultimately for this book, Ayaan Hirsi Ali has had a death sentence placed on her. Like Salman Rushdie, a fatwa is on her life. The director of her movie, Theo Van Gogh, was already murdered in cold blood on the streets of Amsterdam.
Today, Ms. Ali lives in the freest country on earth, the United States. Her book is a warning to us of the nature of the Muslim enemy we fight. Islam is not a religion of peace; it is a religion of unspeakable evil.
Book Review: A story of the indomitable human spirit
Summary: 5 Stars
It must be true that human beings are endowed with certain inalienable rights by their Creator because when they are denied those rights by stifling religious and political subjugations, sometimes the human spirit finds the strength to resist the suffocating, restrictive grip in which it finds itself. Like the tiny flower seeking to blossom exerts the effort to poke its way up through the sod and bloom in the fresh air and sunshine, Ayaan Hirsi Ali would not be denied such liberation in her own life.
Hers is the real-life story of a noble, courageous woman similar to the fictional women depicted in A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini. One would hope that other women living in politically and religiously repressive countries could know Ali's testimony and gain strength from it.
Book Review: A strive for inner truth at a cost....
Summary: 4 Stars
Her writing from start to finish, her truthful account of every aspect of her being, her personal journey into dymystifying and deprograming her past makes one think deeply about their own way of doing things. A remarkable account of a woman that has and is proving that there are no odds against you but your own desire to take the steps to fight for your truth regardless of religion, culture, enviroment and the like.
A must read especially for woman with ancient heritage/culture/religion.
SM
8-07