Leila's Secret by Kooshyar Karimi
In fundamentalist Iran, new life sometimes means certain death. When Leila comes to see Doctor Karimi, both are in danger.Born in a slum to a Muslim father and a Jewish mother, Kooshyar Karimi has transformed himself into a successful doctor, an award-winning writer, and an adoring father. His could be a comfortable life but his conscience won't permit it- he is incapable of turning away the unmarried women who beg him to save their lives by ending the pregnancies that, if discovered, would see them stoned to death.
One of those women is 22-year-old Leila. Beautiful, intelligent, passionate, she yearns to go to university but her strictly traditional family forbids it. Returning home from the library one day - among the few trips she's allowed out of the house - she meets a handsome shopkeeper, and her fate is sealed. Kooshyar has rescued countless women, but Leila seeks his help for a different reason, one that will haunt him for years afterwards and inspire an impossible quest from faraway Australia.
Spellbinding and heartbreaking. Leila's Secret shows us everyday life for women in a country where it can be a crime to fall in love. But for all its tragedy, this unforgettable book is paradoxically uplifting, told from the heart of Kooshyar's immense sympathy, in the hope that each of us - and the stories we tell - can make a difference.
' A remarkable book . . . Karimi earns our trust through his experiences and his sympathy with the plight of the marginalised.' Owen Richardson, Saturday Age
'A profoundly moving story, beautifully told with extraordinary insight, and filling us with awe at the strength of the author's moral courage.' Robin de Crespigny, author of The People Smuggler
'An absolutely stunning book. Leila's story is deeply affecting and Kooshyar Karimi is a consummate storyteller.' Shirley Walker, Author of The Ghost at the Wedding
'Leila's Secret brims with compassion and yearning and eloquently shares the story of a regime suffocating its people and losing all that was great about it. To read this book is to see inside a culture and understand the desperation of its people.' The Hoopla
'A riveting account of one girl's innocent spirit defying the tyranny of Iran's crushing regime. It is a masterpiece of moral impossibilities and climactic suspense.' Bob Brown
'Inspiring . . . often harrowing . . . Offers insight into how and why one man is willing to put the welfare of others before his own safety.' Townsville Bulletin
'Compelling and powerful.' Sunday Age
Karimi, Kooshyar: - Kooshyar Karimi was born in December 1968 in the slums of Tehran. At the age of six, Karimi was compelled to work to contribute to his family's survival and was only eleven when the Islamic Revolution upended his world. Amidst the post-revolutionary chaos and the bloodshed of the Iran-Iraq war, Karimi pursued his education through to medical school with a clear determination to avoid war, stay alive, and support his mother whilst pursuing his passion for reading and writing. By the age of 26, he was a published author, award-winning translator, doctor, husband and father. At this time, he began the research for his book, A History of Iranian Jews. This dangerous activity contributed to his being kidnapped by the Islamic Intelligence Service in the winter of 1998, tortured, burnt, and whipped over 65 days. He was then presented with an unimaginable decision...to spy for MOIS against his own people or to be tortured slowly to death. His forced cooperation was a significant factor in the arrest of thirteen Iranian Jews in March 1999, a case that caused an international outcry. To end this nightmare and escape his own imminent execution, Karimi called on a fateful connection from the past to flee his country across the border to Turkey. Months of anxiety and despair followed till he and his family were granted a refugee visa to Australia. He is now an Australian citizen, practising medicine full-time in New South Wales, and writing in his spare time.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780143783992 |
| ISBN 10 | 0143783998 |
| Title | Leila's Secret |
| Author | Kooshyar Karimi |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Random House Australia |
| Year published | 2017-03-20 |
| Number of pages | 304 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |