Customer Reviews
Infidel - By: Biro, 13 Aug 2010 
This book came highly recommended by several other readers. I am not a auto/biography reader but prefer novels. I started the book but as yet have not finished it. The writing style is easy to read but I could not get into it at all. However my husband, who loves auto/biographies is thoroughly enjoying it & has the follow-up waiting. I have not given up on it entirely & will make another attempt when perhaps I amin the mood.
Moving and damning but with caveats... - By: Mr Tea-Mole, 04 Aug 2010 
This is a well-written, personal account of one woman's journey through her own mind & the world around her. Ayaan Hirsi Ali was born into a traditional Muslim familyin Somalia & livedin Kenya & Saudi Arabiain her youth. Absorbing her beliefs from the societies around her, she became a "pious" Muslim, praying regularly & covering herself, so she believed, for the pleasure of God. However a lingering rancour towards what she often perceived as the myopic & misogynistic practises of the various Muslim societies she livedin festered within her, provoking an internal tension. Fleeing to Holland as a refugee was the epiphanic catalyst she needed to "free her mind" from the shackles of the dogma she had been brought up in. What she saw, felt & experiencedin this "enlightened, civilised, tolerant & progressive" society wasin sharp contrast to the lands she had left. Europe & the West, she concluded, were infinitely more advanced than their Eastern counterparts; their societies far more civilised & humane. Enrolling at university, she began to study social sciencein a bid to understand the principles which underpinned these liberated, progressive societies. Her conclusion? The societies of the East were rootedin stagnant & moribund principles derivedin large part from religion: the subjugation of reason to dogma, patriarchal social structures which inhibited the empowerment & participation of women & a fearful demonisation of the "other"; a fertile breeding ground for intolerance & a rigid, binary view of the world which contributes,in no small way, to the modern phenomenon of terrorism. The West, on the other hand, had undergone a Renaissance, a Reformation (in religion) & most importantly an Enlightenment all of which had helped it evolve to a higher plane of understanding. The different experiences of lived reality she encountered first-handin the two societies (Islamic & Western) were a logical concomitant of the principles upon which those societies were based. The result? Ali jettisons what she now perceives as the superstitious fiction of her religion, becomes an atheist & embraces liberal humanism as the most advanced generator of social values.
A captivating tale from start to finish, this is an important bookin the way it raises so many key questions about the relationship of Islam (and the Muslim world - as a distinct phenomenon) with the West, the nature of faithin the modern world, & the presence, dynamics & future of growing Muslim communitiesin Europe. Ali became a single issue politician specialisingin immigration, specifically Muslim immigration to Europe, & suggested a number of reforms to facilitate the integration process. She also became an outspoken & vociferous critic of Islam per se, arguing that its core tenets intrinsically inhibit Muslim developmentin the modern world. Although not expecting everybody to become an atheist like her, she wants Muslims to examine their faith & enact a reform which will allow a more amenable marriage with modernity. A powerful & often damning critique, Ali's book should force Muslims (or at least those of them with the fortitude to read it) to look more deeply at these issues & work towards alleviating some of the problems which very clearly do affect Muslims & their communities.
That said,in the interest of balance & objectivity, I do feel the following points need to be made. Firstly, Ali seems to have had an exceptionally abusive childhood being raised by a mother & grandmother who displayed signs of pathological neuroses. I would never dream of attacking my child for climbing upon me during prayer. In fact, my 3 year old views prayer time as a game, regularly clambering upon my back whilst I prostrate. Followingin the recorded example of the Prophet Muhammad, I gently lower him to the floor before continuing on. Ali, on the other hand, was screamed at, spat upon & beaten for simply playing around as a child; a horribly ruthless response which, no doubt, seared itself into her memory & bound itself up with her experience of her faith. Unfortunately this type of vicious treatment recurs frequentlyin her encounters with figures of religious authority; take, for example, the Quran teacher who cracked her skull. She was also traumatised by the pre-Islamic African cultural traditions of female circumcision & genital mutilation - customs which are not practisedin the majority of the Muslim world nor sanctioned by the mainstream Islamic legal tradition. Inevitably, this catalogue of horribly warped experiences tightly bound themselves up with her lived experience of the faith &in rejecting Islam later onin life, I would contend that she, no doubt, would also have been renouncing the unhappy corollary of misery brought upon her by her abusive experience of the religion. Whilst this,in no way, is intended to detract from or negate the validity of her decision, I think a broader psychological context is useful when attempting to understand, at a deeper level, the events of her life.
Another point of contention, for me, is that Ali, after her rejection of Islam, comes across as a provocateur par excellence. She seems to thrive off fomenting furore; directing attention to herself through shocking & provoking her audiences - particularly her Western, non-Muslim audiences who would baulk at making the same assertions at the risk of being labelled xenophobic or "Islamophobic". Yet, as an "insider", somebody who has lived & breathed Islam, she has the freedom to criticise without inhibition. This resultsin two responses. On the one hand, she is reviled & despised by reactionary Muslims who see her as a despicable traitor. On the other she is proudly proclaimed as a poster-girl of the Western "emancipation movement" - a symbolic figurehead who confirms the negative stereotypes many Westerners hold about the Islamic faith whilst simultaneously reinforcing the superiority of the Western, secular way of life. Given Ali's avowed assertions of wanting to work towards alleviating problemsin Muslim societies, the success of this approach - based upon vitriolic denigration & insensitive provocation & which polarises opinions so harshly - is surely questionable.
Lastly, Ali is,in my opinion, a little too naïve & simplisticin her Manichean embrace of the West & rejection of Islam. Setting them up as essentially contradictory monoliths, her book is a strong advocate of the Clash of Civilisations thesis. For me, though, her dichotomous black-and-white scenario bypasses the many shades of gray which quite clearly do exist.
On the one hand, Ali's central issue is with the PRACTISE of Islam as she has experienced itin several societies, whilst the silent majority of moderate Muslims, equally abhorred & disgusted by the acts donein the name of their religion, see them as clear perversions & aberrations of the original teachings (although Ali argues that Islam's core teachings spawn a milieu conducive to the horrors committedin its name). From this perspective, her assertion that - for example - Bin Ladenin orchestrating the attack on the Twin Towers (which, incidentally, was the catalyst for her own apostasy) was doing nothing other than following the guidance of the Quran is clearly disingenuous (as is her seemingly wilful oblivion to the moderate viewpoint of the majority of Muslims). Poor Westerners who seek to learn about Islam from Ali & her ilk would do well to be a little less gullible; an alternative perspective is always enriching and,in this case, the tales of European converts to Islam add an interesting nuance to the whole scenario. Those so disposed may enjoy Muhammad Asad's (formerly Leopold Weiss) classic autobiography "The Road to Mecca" or Charles Le Gai Eaton's magisterial "Islam & the Destiny of Man" as primers.
On the other hand, the West is not the rarefied haven of utopia she makes it out to be. In spite of material advances there are real social ills afflicting Western societies. Not least amongst these is the sense of anomie or existential nihilism brought about, according to some, by the absence of the sacred. This has led to what Sarte has called a "God-shaped holein our human consciousness" & modernity has been described as a collection of forces, of growing momentum, to shovel matter - as a substitute - into this hole. Religions traditionally anchored us into a metaphysical understanding of existence which breathed life & meaning into the most perfunctory of acts; the modern outlook has denuded us of this. As opposed to the Manichean demarcation presented by Ali & others, maybe the body of contemporary material civilisation could benefit from the soul of spiritually enlightened, traditional religion.
In conclusion, this is a very interesting read which is well-written & engaging from start to finish. Ali raises some very important points which, quite simply, Muslims need to come to terms with. We are no longer livingin the comfortable faith age of medieval times. Religious faith,in general, & Islam,in particular, have come under powerful & sustained intellectual attack: Dawkins, Hitchens & Harris are busy digging religion's grave, whilst Ali, Rushdie & Spencer want to push Islam inside. Muslims who bury their headsin the sand & choose to ignore the exigencies of their age are committing intellectual suicide (with - by the way - no merry virgins awaiting them at the end). Ali's book is a powerful wake-up call to Muslims to tackle head-on the warped practises perpetratedin the name of their faith and,in a more general sense, to come to terms with the broader challenges of modernity.
Whether this happens, though, or whether the increasingly volatile spiral of reactionary violence, insensitive provocation & mutual resentment spins out of control is anybody's guess.
Highly informative, a fascinating story. - By: G. Connell, 13 Jul 2010 
I've often wondered about the Asians & Africans who come to Britain & how different their culture might be to ours. You hear about honour killings & about how one family has brought shame on another. You hear about female circumcision, polygamy & arranged marriages also but you never quite understand the whys & wherefores of these strange (to westerners) customs. This book explains it all. It's a story of love & of tragedy. It also a story of immense injustice to womenin the name of Islam to which Ayaan turns all her energies to fight against, even though it means being ostracised by her own family.
Packed with a punch - By: Leah Armstrong, 21 Feb 2010 Hirsi Ali gets your attention fast! I couldn't put this book down & I have since passed it on to several female friends to read. Her story is riveting & educational. She is definetly extremist & it makes you wonder if she has pushed some limits a bit too far on the subject of Islam.
It's gutsy & reminds me of how fortunate I am to have been bornin a country that respects women & that I have the freedom to choose my religion, my life partner & get an education. This book is something I think every young North American girl should read by the time she is 18. Then perhaps they will not squandor the opportunities laid before themin their yound adulthood.
The life story of an original - By: Eccles, 01 Jan 2010 This book is the story of her early yearsin peacetime Somalia, as a teenage extremistin Kenya, escape from an arranged marriage, education & famein Holland, the ritual murder of collaborator Van Gogh & final exile as an academicin NYC.
And what awaited herin America? The Harvard muslim chaplainin leaked emailsin April 2009 was revealed as a supporter of capital punishment for apostates. In this double-think world, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a highly-educated, talented & notably graceful hero of our times, is our brilliant & patient guide.
She is much hated & mocked by Somalis, having rejected wholesale the ideology brought to their homeland by Arab slavers. Yet she obviously appreciates Somali culture, writing warmly about her family throughout, its many extended members, the eccentric second wives, secret marriage to a handsome cousin & even pow-wows with eldersin a Dutch caravan over her rejection of marriage (!)
I remain haunted by descriptions of incidents during her early prominencein Holland.
After likening Muhammad with a modern paedophile on Dutch TV, she had been given police protection due to murder threats. Meeting a journalistin a hotel, word reaches the guards that several posses of North African muslims are arrivingin cars, tipped off by disapproving hotel staff. She is immediately bundled out of a fire door & sped away to safety.
On other occasions, CCTV picks up stalkers ringing the bell to her flat, insanely oblivious to arrest. She had left her home by this time, & like Geert Wilders after her, flitted between remote army bases & other hide-outs.
Despite remainingin genuine danger from self-righteous religious psychopathics, Ayaan has nonetheless thrived since this terrifying time. In recent years, she has set up her own think tank on islam & women - theahafoundation.org. I'd recommend its meticulous reports.
This is one of the few books I've put everything on hold to read straight through. Read it & share it.
