Infidel (book)
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| Author | Ayaan Hirsi Ali |
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| Country | The Netherlands |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Autobiography |
| Publisher | Free Press |
| Released | February 1, 2007[1] |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 368 p. |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-7432-9503-X |
Infidel is an autobiographical book and New York Times bestseller by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, published in 2007. It is a translation of the Dutch book Mijn Vrijheid ("My Freedom"), which was released on September 29, 2006. [2] It was released in English on February 1, 2007.[1] For security reasons, a female ghostwriter of the second part of the book remains anonymous.[3]
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[edit] Synopsis
Hirsi Ali writes about her youth in Somalia, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia and Kenya, about her flight to the Netherlands where she applied for political asylum, her university experience in Leiden, her work for the Labour Party and her transfer to the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy. The book ends with her return to the Tweede Kamer (Dutch parliament), over two months following the murder of Theo van Gogh, with whom she made the film Submission.
[edit] Reception
The launch of the book in the Netherlands was a great success, with the initial print run selling out in two days. [4] A review in de Volkskrant concluded that "anyone who discovers Hirsi Ali's tumultuous history can only sympathise with her".[3] The German edition of the book, Mein Leben, meine Freiheit, debuted in the top 20 of the bestseller list of Der Spiegel. [4][5]
The book was also well received upon the release of the English edition in 2007. Reviewing the book for The Sunday Times, Christopher Hitchens called it a "remarkable book".[6] Anne Applebaum, writing in The Washington Post, said "Infidel is a unique book, Ayaan Hirsi Ali is a unique writer, and both deserve to go far."[7] A review in The New York Times described the book as a "brave, inspiring and beautifully written memoir".[8] In an interview, Newsweek editor Fareed Zakaria described it as "an amazing book by an amazing person". [9]
[edit] Criticism
The book was also praised in The Observer, though with a critical note: "But of course in voicing her opinion in the style she does, she risks lumping together over a billion people from different nations, cultures and traditions as a single 'problem'"[10] The Economist echoed this sentiment, stating "much as she tries, the kind of problems that Ms Hirsi Ali describes in Infidel are all too human to be blamed entirely on Islam. Her book shows that her life, like those of other Muslims, is more complex than many people in the West may have realised. But the West's tendency to seek simplistic explanations is a weakness that Ms Hirsi Ali also shows she has been happy to exploit."[11] Newsweek magazine gave the book a negative review, claiming that the reader will feel "manipulated" by Hirsi's story and "Hirsi Ali is more a hero among Islamophobes than Islamic women.". Additionally the reviewer says that in the book, Hirsi sounds "single-minded and reactionary as the zealots she's worked so hard to oppose."[12].
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Infidel: My Life: The Story of My Enlightenment". Amazon.co.uk.
- ^ "Schaterlachen om vrijheid van Ayaan". Algemeen Dagblad (September 30, 2006).(Dutch)
- ^ a b van Zijl, Frank (September 30, 2006). "De zware beproevingen van een moslimmeisje". de Volkskrant.(Dutch)
- ^ a b van Zanten, Claudia (October 3, 2006). "Boek Hirsi Ali in twee dagen uitverkocht". Elsevier.(Dutch)
- ^ Broder, Henryk (October 2, 2006). "Mohammed wird Liebe bedeuten". Der Spiegel.(German)
- ^ Christopher Hitchens (February 4, 2007). A voice that will not be silenced. The Sunday Times.
- ^ Anne Applebaum (February 4, 2007). The Fight for Muslim Women. Washington Post.
- ^ William Grimes (February 14, 2007). No Rest for a Feminist Fighting Radical Islam. New York Times.
- ^ Show 308 Transcript- February 23, 2007. Foreign Exchange (February 23, 2007).
- ^ Andrew Anthony (February 4, 2007). Taking the fight to Islam. The Observer.
- ^ Dark secrets. The Economist (February 8, 2007).
- ^ Lorraine Ali (March 5, 2007). Only One Side of the Story. Newsweek.
[edit] External links
- AEI website
- Official book website (Dutch)
[edit] Excerpts
[edit] Reviews
- Sandip Roy. The High Price of Freedom. San Francisco Chronicle.
- William Grimes. No Rest for a Feminist Fighting Radical Islam. New York Times.
- Dark secrets. The Economist.
- Anne Applebaum. The Fight for Muslim Women. Washington Post.
- Christopher Hitchens. A voice that will not be silenced. The Sunday Times.
- Andrew Anthony. Taking the fight to Islam. The Observer.
- Luuk van Middelaar. Out of Europe: Infidel, by Ayaan Hirsi Ali. Wall Street Journal.
- Sol Schindler. A Muslim woman, her leadership and its costs. The Washington Times.
- Theodore Dalrymple. A feminist for the ages .... The Globe and Mail.
[edit] Interviews on book
- Joel Whitney. Infidel - An interview with Ayaan Hirsi Ali. Guernica Magazine.
- Carole Zimmer. How `Infidel' Hirsi Ali Rejected Islam, Survived Death Threats. Bloomberg.
- Tom Ashbrook. Ayaan Hirsi Ali. On Point.
- William C. Mann. Critic of Islam finds new home in U.S.. Associated Press.
- Laurie Goodstein. Enter the Dutch ‘Infidel,’ Faithful to Herself. New York Times.
- Penny Wark. My life as an infidel. The Times.
- Deroy Murdock. Who Says “Ladies First”?. National Review Online.
