Review: The Dawn of Saudi: In Search For Freedom

Author: Homa Pourasgari
Publisher: Linbrook Press
ISBN: 976-0-9779780-1-4

Until you read this powerfully compelling book, you are not likely to truly understand the hardships many Saudi women endure at the hands of radical Muslims.

Homa Pourasgari was born in Iran and at the age of twelve moved to the USA to learn English. In the Preface to The Dawn of Saudi: In Search For Freedom Pourasgari informs us that she has chosen to write about Saudi Arabia rather than of Iran because in order to comprehend what constitutes today's Iranian government, you first must understand Islam. Consequently, in order to understand Islam, it is necessary to travel to the source of where it all started-the Wahhabis or today known as the Saudis who believe they are the unifiers of Islamic practice.

The opening chapters of The Dawn of Saudi focuses on Sahar bint Saad bin Kadar Al-Hijazi (Sahar, daughter of Saad and granddaughter of Kadar Al-Hijazi), who is the third wife of Husam bin Zaffar bin Amjad Abdul Samad (Husam, son of Zaffar, grandson of Amjad Abdol Samad). We are informed that on her wedding night Sahar collapsed and died of an aneurysm. As we read on, we learn that Sahar was forced to marry the fearsome and much older wealthy businessman, Husam bin Zaffar as part of a business transaction between her family and Husam.

Apparently, Sahar's grandfather Kadar was a wealthy and famous Saudi multibillionaire, however, as of late his business was not doing very well. Husam's company was supposed to merge with that of Kadar in order for the latter's company to avoid bankruptcy. Also part of the equation was an American public traded company, Crawford Enterprises, a Real Estate Acquisition, Inc of which Andrew Crawford and his thirty-seventy year old bachelor son, Jason, sat on the board of directors.

Kadar was a major shareholder of Crawford and if the merger didn't materialize, he would be forced to sell his Crawford's shares and the result would be devastating to the Crawford company. On the other hand, once Kadar joined forced with Husam, their conglomerate would become one of the largest in the world. When word reached the Crawford family that Sahar had died on her wedding night, it seems that all they were concerned about was that the merger wouldn't take place. The fact that someone as young as Sahar died on her wedding night didn't seem to bother them at all.

Pourasgari has done her homework and displays an impressive familiarity with Saudi culture, its mores, religion, business ethics, appalling treatment of women, slave labor to which the world turns a blind eye, attitudes toward Jews, Catholics and other religions, and punishment for those who don't abide by their rules. We also lean about Sahar's friend, Dawn Parnell whom she met while attending college in Spain. Dawn was from Utah and made the mistake of falling in love with a Saudi old enough to be her father. After meeting her future husband at a night club in Barcelona, Dawn decided to drop out of college and convert from Mormon to Muslim. As a result, her parents disowned her. Ironically, Dawn felt that her parents held too many rigid beliefs and little did she know what was in store for her after she married her Saudi husband. It seems that Dawn's love for her husband had blinded her to the harsh realities as to what life would be once she left the United States to live in Saudi Arabia.

What I found particularly effective about this absorbing novel is the manner in which Pourasgari was able to expertly weave the various strands of her narrative. There certainly is a great deal to chew on here with its high adventure and suspense, romance, the secret lurking in the past of one of its characters, the distressing view of Muslim fundamentalism, and the satisfying transformation of one of its principal characters. Moreover, the author distinguishes herself with a combination of plainspoken language with a skillful use of characterization that smoothly blends in with the yarn. In fact, she is far from being afraid to permit her imagination run away from her or to assume that you will keep on following her down a very bizarre and sometimes terrifying path. And you surely will follow her as the plot thickens with its many twists and turns that will keep you glued to your seat.

Click Here To Read Norm's Interview With Homa Pourasgari