Book Review: "Infidel" by Ayaan Hirsi Ali

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This is the book I was supposed to attend book club for last night, however we have all been sick with the flu so I did not make it. I had a lot of difficulty with this book, but having finished, I am very glad I stuck with it. It's a powerful and compelling memoir where in Ayaan Hirsi Ali describes her childhood and upbringing as a Muslim and her escape from that life to becoming a politician and an activist and the ramifications that follow.

My Rating (via GoodReads): 4/5 stars
Kobo Price: $16.99

The reason I think I had so much difficulty with this book is that it was highly political and I've never been truly interested in politics so I found a lot of sections difficult to follow. However I think all of that was definitely necessary to the memoir itself, I just found the first half of the book dragged on. Anyhow there were so many compelling topics in this book that it was hard to ignore and walk away from, plus it was a book club book so I had to finish it. The detail spent describing her Muslim upbringing is truly fascinating and horrifying at the same time. I've only ever had a vague understanding of the Muslim religious beliefs and their treatment of women, this really breaks it down for you to a point where I was almost crying in some parts.

Now I should probably mention that I'm sure not all practicing Muslims behave in the manner of those mentioned in this memoir and I am in no way attacking anyone's religious beliefs. I can't quite possibly imagine going through the events that this author went through and the courage and strength it must have taken to escape from such a situation and further more speak out against the religion and the abuse that occurred. I really enjoyed the second half of the memoir where she talks about her journey to Germany and the Netherlands and her introduction to a more modern society.

I highly recommend this, though it is really deep and in some parts complicated it is worth the read for sure.