| Book Review | Not Without My Daughter.
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"You are here for the rest of your life. Do you understand? You are not leaving Iran. You are here until you die." - Betty Mahmoody.
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It was a humid day in1984 when Betty Mahmoody lands in Iran with her husband Sayyed Bozorg Mahmoody (Moody) and her daughter Mahtob. As an American, she instantly detests Iran with dirt sprawling across every inch of the country. With her four year old daughter in tow, she feels uneasy about having to spend two weeks in the dreadful country. Betty first meets Moody at a hospital where she was being treated. They immediately hit it off and Moody's kind demeanor towards her two sons from a previous marriage, melts her heart. Their relationship blooms over the next few years and very soon they tie the knot. Though Betty notices unusual changes in Moody's behaviour when his cousin from Iran drops by, she shrugs it off as normal.
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Moody convinces Betty to visit Iran to see his family over a span of two weeks but she cannot dismiss a nagging disturbance at the back of her head about the visit. As soon as she lands in a alien country, she immediately noticed how submissive women are all around her. She is then made to wear a chador and Manteau along with a pair of long pants as the Iranian government orders. She's met with a swarm of relatives at the airport and finds herself fixated by the unusual customs that the country follows. Betty and Mahtob experience a wave of sickness and morbidity as they take in the dirtiness of both the house and people that she'll have to live with during her stay. She gets to meet countless people who are awed at the sight of an American woman but it soon gets replaced by insignificance.
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She notices a sudden change in her husband's personality as he soon starts bullying her and shows dominating quality of a typical Iranian man. Her fears turn into reality when he reveals the truth that she now cannot leave Iran and that she is now an Iranian citizen and has to listen to her husband. Betty struggles with the truth and hence begins her quest for freedom. Trapped in an unknown city with her child, she then fights back to escape.In this work of non-fiction, Betty tells us that there are many other women like her who are trapped in Iran with no way out. These women are Americans and in spite of being educated, they find themselves giving up to the fate that has been handed down by their husbands. It's shocking to read about such incidences where women are often rendered helpless and kept as prisoners. Betty's story is intense as she narrates honestly about various traditions where women are forced to submit to their men. They have no say in anything and the laws do not support them as well. If a woman is being beaten for no fault of hers, no one steps forward to rescue her because it's often considered that they deserve such beatings. Betty soon realises that she needs to rescue her daughter before she starts taking in Iranian culture.
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This book is brilliant and brutally raw and I can imagine the uproar it must have caused when it initially came out. Her experiences and opinions about Iran and the government are very loud and unpleasant. As a woman, when I read it I couldn't help but sympathise with Betty but I felt gloriously happy as she never gave up. It's frightening to see such people exist but one cannot deny such existence. Betty's story is inspiring and perhaps this was why I finished a book of over 500 pages in just two days. I highly recommend it.
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Rating - 5/5