Seeking Sanctuary: Journeys to Sudan
Part reportage, part travel writing, Seeking Sanctuary presents the stories of six Western converts to Islam seeking a better life for themselves by moving to a country more in line with their new religion. Their journeys – spiritual, cultural and geographical – told in their own words, are set within the wider context of the author's own experience as an expatriate in Khartoum.
REVIEWS
"There is a current fashion in this country for re-inventing oneself by taking up a new life in another country. This is the focus of Seeking Sanctuary. But the stories in it unfold not in a Tuscan hill village, or a French farmhouse or a Greek island. They take us rather to the heart of Sudan, in the footsteps of a group of western converts to Islam who have chosen to settle in a Muslim country – in a process of hijra – as a means of more fully living their adopted religion.
Although a non-Muslim herself, the author’s stated intention in writing the book was to provide a counterbalance to the negative stereotyping of Muslims projected in the media. Struck by the contrast between the converts she knew in Sudan and the images hitting the post-9/11 headlines, she felt that their voices should be heard.
Seeking Sanctuary addresses many of the issues central to an understanding of Islam and the phenomenon of conversion, much of it in the converts’ own words. Their personal journeys are set against the backdrop of present-day Sudan and supplemented by the author’s own exploration of its social, cultural, political and religious dimensions.
Seeking Sanctuary is an easy and enjoyable read which nevertheless encourages us to look from a different angle at modern western society. It also provides insight into a culture that is little known and largely misunderstood." Emel Magazine Oct 2005
Seeking Sanctuary opens a window to a different world.
Mathaba News Network
Click here for full review
Part reportage, part travel writing, Seeking Sanctuary presents the stories of six Western converts to Islam seeking a better life for themselves by moving to a country more in line with their new religion. Their journeys – spiritual, cultural and geographical – told in their own words, are set within the wider context of the author's own experience as an expatriate in Khartoum.
REVIEWS
"There is a current fashion in this country for re-inventing oneself by taking up a new life in another country. This is the focus of Seeking Sanctuary. But the stories in it unfold not in a Tuscan hill village, or a French farmhouse or a Greek island. They take us rather to the heart of Sudan, in the footsteps of a group of western converts to Islam who have chosen to settle in a Muslim country – in a process of hijra – as a means of more fully living their adopted religion.
Although a non-Muslim herself, the author’s stated intention in writing the book was to provide a counterbalance to the negative stereotyping of Muslims projected in the media. Struck by the contrast between the converts she knew in Sudan and the images hitting the post-9/11 headlines, she felt that their voices should be heard.
Seeking Sanctuary addresses many of the issues central to an understanding of Islam and the phenomenon of conversion, much of it in the converts’ own words. Their personal journeys are set against the backdrop of present-day Sudan and supplemented by the author’s own exploration of its social, cultural, political and religious dimensions.
Seeking Sanctuary is an easy and enjoyable read which nevertheless encourages us to look from a different angle at modern western society. It also provides insight into a culture that is little known and largely misunderstood." Emel Magazine Oct 2005
Seeking Sanctuary opens a window to a different world.
Mathaba News Network
Click here for full review
