Children of the Jinn: In Search of the Kurds and Their Country

I could hardly put this book down - it was well written, lucid, & gave a fascinating "aperçu" of an inexperienced Westerner (Margaret Kahn, an American) living & coping for the first time with the vagaries & unfamiliar customs (such as Persian Ta'arof) of two distinct middle eastern cultures (Persian & Kurdish). It was very interesting to see the contrasts between the Kurdish & Persian culture described. The author's naiveté & ignorance of the cultures was at times annoying (for example, her initial ignorance of the appropriate gender-based behaviors required in Muslim societies), but I appreciated the author's great honesty in describing her frustrations & feelings so openly. I appreciated even more her depiction of the Kurds as a people who have been disenfranchised, bombed, gassed, oppressed, murdered in their tens of thousands over & over again by Turkey, Iraq & somewhat less so by Iran, & cynically used & betrayed by America & other Western powers. This author views the Kurds with great compassion & emotional feeling. Her book was banned by the Istanbul State Security Court. which is yet another great reason to read this book!