Infidel Book Review

Image taken from kaboodle.com

4.5/5

Written by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Infidel is the biogrpahy of a woman who takes the reader on a geographical journey of Africa. From Mogadishu to Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia to Kenya, Ali describes in great detail how as a woman, violence and subordination followed her from place to place, leaving her the victim of countless cases of physical violence, intimidation, neglect and verbal abuse.

You will not forget the chapter when she describes how as a child she was pinned down by her grandmother and forced to undergo female genital mutilation -- an ancient practice forced upon young women that involves the unhygenic and unsafe cutting of their genitals. You're heart breaks with every new detail that is described by Ali.

As her story progresses, she eventually flees to the Netherlands as means of avoiding an arranged marriage. It is while she is in Europe that she truly begins to question the Islamic faith and the traditions of her clan, The Osman Mahamud. It is at this time she starts a crusade against Islam and makes it her mission to receive an adequate education in politics that will enable her to work for Parliament and eventually create change for Muslim women.

Ali's biography begins with a tragic death in 2004. Her friend Theo Van Gogh is murdered outside of his home in Amsterdam by a Muslim fanatic. Van Gogh was shot to death and then stabbed in the chest, where a letter addressed to Ayaan Hirsi Ali was found pinned to his remains. The letter stated that there would be a holy war against the West and that Ali was his next target.
Infidel is an interesting and informative perspective on the Islamic faith, Muslim fanatics and dated religious traditions given from the point of view of a woman reliving her childhood and adolescence. However, I feel inclined to say that it is one woman's experience and should not be taken as unanimous for all Mulsim women's experiences.

Finally, the biogrpahy is not an easy read and it is likely the content will burden you for a while since her writing is at times very graphic and disturbing. That being said, it is an amazing piece of literature that will open your eyes to the suffering of others and the disparity around the world.