Not Without My Daughter: The Harrowing True Story of a Mother's Courage

by Betty Mahmoody, William Hoffer, Mahmoody and Hoffer

Book Overview

Not Without My Daughter is the true story of a courageous mother and her breathtaking odyssey, now a major motion picture starring Academy Award-winner Sally Field!

In August 1984, Michigan housewife Betty Mahmoody accompanied her husband to his native Iran for a two-week vacation. To her horror, she found herself and her four-year-old daughter, Mahtob, virtual prisoners of a man rededicated to his Shiite Moslem faith, in a...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312925883
• ISBN13: 9780312925888
• Release Date: February 1991
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Length: 432 Pages
• Weight: 0.56 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 4.2" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

Excellent book

I'm amazed at the venom spewed from hate filled minds about this book. The poor woman was, literally, kidnapped. She deserved a chance to escape. Love Iran? Hate Betty Mahmoody? Then go back there.

The Bravest Among Us

This is one of my all time favorite books. A true story where you are kept on the edge of your seat as this mother searches for ways to bring her daughter back with her from a foreign country to the United States. You tense up as they are smuggled through road blocks or are escaping over rough terrain. Even after the book ends, you find yourself wanting to know more and more about where they are today and how things are with them. Word comes they have had their identities changed and live among us. Excellent spell-binding reading.

S.A.W MLMS

Betty Mahmoody's book was truly amazing. Although there is a lot of controversy saying that she has degraded many people in Iran and Tehran I don't think that is true. In the story she recognizes that she shouldn't judge people by nationality, and also she learns that there are good people in Iran. She makes many friends even though she still has many enemies. Her story of escape and the details of her determination are truly inspiring and the stories of her adventures and adversities in another country are still disturbing. It is scary to believe that there are people who would do such things as Moody and other men and sometimes women did to Betty. Also though it is touching how many people tried to help her in her times of need. Mahtob was also very brave, especially being a girl of her age. I'm sorry that she was hurt by Moody, and I'm sorry that he didn't turn out to be the stable father that he originally portrayed himself as. This book was truly amazing and I hope that others come to believe this as well.I would definitely recomend this book to anyone who enjoys adventure, excitement, plot twists, and perhaps quite a bit of danger. There are some parts of the book that are not exactly suitable for children under the age of twelve but above that the book is safe for anyone. I enjoyed this book and I think others will too.

Fascinating and suspenseful!

In this fascinating book, Betty Mahmoody relates the story of her life as the wife of an Iranian man who was a doctor in the U.S. when she met him. Although possessed by moods of depression, Moody is a loving husband and father most of the time. When his nephew comes to visit, they begin to plan for Moody's family to come to Iran for a two-week vacation. Betty suspects that Moody may try to detain them in his native land, but she relents when he promises on the Koran that this will not be the case. They go to Iran, where Betty finds Moody's relatives to be rude and arrogant, as well as having filthy houses and bodies. She cannot wait for the 2 weeks to be over, but when the time comes to return to the States, Betty's worst nightmare comes true when Moody detains them. While he is in Iran, Moody's word is law and no one can interfere with his decision to keep his family there. What follows is a nightmare of beatings, harrassment, and virtual imprisonment, as Moody returns to his traditional Islamic ways. This is an incredibly eye-opening book, and the courage of Betty and her daughter during their ordeal is inspiring.

BETTY - HOPE IN A CHADOR

Betty is a woman of strength and her courageous struggle to flee her tormentor clearly emphasises this fact. The book is one of the most exhilirating books that one can read as it strongly highlights the unbroken human spirit as well as faith and devotion to Jesus Christ. I believe that the experience that Betty as an individual undergoes gives hope to even the most pathetic souls. The fact that she and her daughter are conquerers in their own right allows for us to look upon them with admiration and satisfaction that prayers are always answered.