The Girl from Foreign

by Sadia Shepard

Book Overview

A search for shipwrecked ancestors, forgotten histories, and a sense of home Fascinating and intimate , The Girl from Foreign is one woman's search for ancient family secrets that leads to an adventure in far-off lands. Sadia Shepard, the daughter of a white Protestant from Colorado and a Muslim from Pakistan, was shocked to discover that her grandmother was a descendant of the Bene Israel, a tiny Jewish community shipwrecked in India two thousand...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0143115774
• ISBN13: 9780143115779
• Release Date: June 2009
• Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.5" x 8.4"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

A fresh perspective, beautifully written

Ms. Shephard gives an honest and captivating look at what it is like to be caught between different cultural and religious traditions. Raised in a home by a Christian father, Muslim mother, and Jewish grandmother, Ms. Shephard goes on a journey to India to examine her heritage and the stories of those who came before her. Her story demonstrates that love and understanding can overcome that which makes us different.

The Girl from Foreign

I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys stories of personal growth, travel, the intersection of cultures, and questions of faith. In The Girl From Foreign, Shepard journeys to India to search for her roots in a small community called the Bene Israel, who believe they were shipwrecked there in 175 B.C.E. While in Mumbai, Shepard, the daughter of a Muslim mother, Christian father and Jewish grandmother, wrestles with questions of identity, reconnects with her family's past, and falls in love. She tells her story beautifully, and does a wonderful job of raising important, timely issues. Informative, engaging, thought provoking, and powerful. I loved it.

Fascinating story, beautifully told

I expected this book to be informative and interesting, but I had no idea of how emotionally involved I would feel by the end. Shepard's first-person narrative describes the two years she spent in India, researching her grandmother's roots in a small community of Indian Jews. Her tale depicts the blending and intermingling, successful and otherwise, of nationalities, cultures, and religions, both in India, Pakistan, and in the U.S. Her quest to understand her grandmother better inevitably draws the reader in, and by the end of the book, I couldn't help but feel an intimate connection to both Sadia and her grandmother. Shepard tells her story beautifully, and I was very impressed that this is her first book. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys personal narratives, foreign travel, the intersection of cultures, and questions of religious faith.

Touching exploration of what makes us who we are

Is there a significant difference between family and spirituality, and family and religion? In Girl From Foreign Sadia Sheppard, a young woman with three religions and one home, explores the distinction in a quest to discover her grandmother's roots. In this quest Sadia begins a complex journey into Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Can one have three spiritual homes? Or is it necessary to choose one? What unites all three religions and what distinguishes them? Can one live with the values implicit in all three religions? This book highlights the ambiguity of life. How we as modern people can get beyond the view of the world in black & white. The world in actuality is a multiplicity of shades of color. Why do we have to define differences rather than developing a sense of expansiveness? For Miss Shepard, as it is for most of us, it was important to discover her grandmother's physical and spiritual roots. That knowledge of our ancestors gives all of us a sense of physical continuity and a concreteness which then becomes a jumping off point to discover our own self. I literally took Sadia Shepard's journey with me as I read her story. It is a moving tribute to her grandmother and presents possibilities for individual peace within a warring world.

Entertaining, Insightful Journey

Mesmerizing memoir, quirky nuanced story telling. Engagingly discombobulated at times, yet microscopically real, as Shepard explores the nooks and crannies of India and Pakistan using her curiosity, camera and notebook to illuminate micro-cultural threads that weave the tapestry of her heritage. Full of fascinating exposure to Jewish Indians with unique roots and customs who lived harmoniously among Muslims and Hindus for generations. A stirring exploration into the diverse cultural palette of South Asia. A book to read slowly to best savor the revelations that unfold with Shepard's entertaining and insightful journey full of detailed ambiance and discerning commentary. Readers beware, as this book may have a lasting impact on your own desire to understand a little bit more about the influences of your own cultural legacy.