Burned Alive: A Survivor of an "Honor Killing" Speaks Out (A Sharon McCone Mystery, 25)

by Souad

Book Overview

When Souad was seventeen she fell in love. In her village, as in so many others, sex before marriage was considered a grave dishonour to one's family and was punishable by death. This was her crime.... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0446694878
• Release Date: May 2005
• Publisher: Warner Books
• Length: 225 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.6" x 6.0"

Customer Reviews

Captivating

This book is about a woman who survives an attempted honor killing after she has gotten pregnant by a neighbor. the neighbor professes his love for her, impregnates her and then, leaves her to deal with the consequences. she discusses village traditions which mandate that she be killed for premarital sex. She is also quite honest about her difficulties after moving to Switzerland. What makes this book a wonderful read is that she does not portray herself as "cured" after replanting herself in Switzerland. she discusses the psychological challenges that await her, as she tries to make a new family and also connect her old one, as her child from the improper union was adopted by another family . My only problem with the book is that Souad seems quite eager to adopt western traditions, morals and actions. I wonder if this is a product of translation.

Burned Alive....tragic but true

This book held my interest and at times made for shocking reading. A country with beliefs so foreign to us made it almost abhorant. The true tragedy is how women in other cultures suffer and we are powerless to do anything to stop it. This book was written by a very very brave woman.

Very sad and I hope she is living a good life now.

I found this book moving. I guess there is some controversy if she is a real person and if the story is real. I tend to believe so. Her account of what happened seems like how a young girl would think, especially an uneducated teenager with a romantic streak to her personality. I have PTSD and so how she reacts to situations rings true to me. How she coped with her children seems authentic to me. When I read memoirs, I keep in mind that people will embellish their stories. Sometimes subconsciously. I think our memories tend to be tarnished by our own hopes, how we view ourselves and others, temperament and personality and other factors. Take 10 people who watched the same accident and you will get 10 different accounts about what happened. You have to read autobiographies and keep that in mind instead of being literal. I also read that this book will cause more anti-Arabic sentiment among readers. As someone who lived around many Arab-Americans when I lived in my hometown, I can testify that Arabs are like anyone else. There are good and bad among them. And yes, some do tend to treat their women badly. I remember one Arab asked for directions and he became mad at me because I was looking him in the eyes. So he cussed me out before I could finish giving him his request. Well, I swore back at him and he looked astonished! I guess he wasn't used to women not taking any guff. I also had a landlord who was Arab-American. He said he would never take his wife to Saudi Arabia and told me accounts of abuse that happens there. He was kind and I don't think he would ever intentionally hurt his wife. He owned a store and occasionally give my children stuff. I recommend this book and it will make you angry. This treatment of women should not be acceptable in any culture. But this disgusting custom is not an excuse to hate someone for what nationality or religion they are.

I Just Want to Thank You - The Torture WILL STOP

I want to thank you for writing this book. It is a horrific account of one woman, who is also an example of many women around the world whose human rights are less than that of an animal. I am so sorry for all you have been through. It is because of the stories that I have read that have caused me to join hw.org - Human Rights Watch - Defending Human Rights Worldwide. The barbaric torture of women, the honor killings, the rape, stoning, burning alive will come to an end. Your story along with a few others was the major catalyst in my decision for helping to bring this to an end in any way I can. Reading about what this girl endured was chilling. It is a book like this that causes humanity to take a stand for humanity. Souad is a hero. She speaks out. Because of her words and courage she is a catalyst for humanitarian change, especially for women and children around the world. This is a book that I feel should be required reading in every school, in every land, until this torture comes to an end. Read this book! This is a story where you might ask "why" something like this could happen. Maybe the reason is so we see to it that it never happens again.