Book Review of Ayaan Hirsi Ali’s

INFIDEL

This autobiography was acquired as just another reference source on Islam. It has now become not only a valuable resource but the author gives deeply revealing insights about the inscrutable values and unshakable beliefs of Muslims not gained in other readings.
This is a wonderful and inspiring book and, separate from any religious issues, it reveals Ali to be a woman who could serve as a role model for people in any tough circumstances but especially for young women. I commend you mothers to read it and to pass it on to your daughters when they are ready for it.
With active opposition from her native land and people; a loving but absent father; a mother nearly insane from neglect and over work; the mud and wattle hut of her beginnings; poor basic education and the bewildering workings and values of her new environment, Ali, alone, made herself over into a totally new and enlightened person. At each step in her self development she was faced with seemingly insurmountable obstacles but each time managed to convince herself to persevere. At this point in time she has done very well indeed. Now, at still a young age, she is multi-lingual and is highly regarded as well educated, governmentally experienced, a gifted speaker, an eloquent writer and a courageous and independent thinker. That she overcame these obstacles and accomplished so much after growing up for 20 plus years with strong Muslim roots and influence is all the more remarkable. Now in the US she has become an associate of the prestigious Heritage Institute. For these reasons alone the book is worth reading.
More than most sources, she provides a ground level look at how Muslims live, regard life, value others and experience religion on a personal level. You will learn how Muslims live with the seemingly harsh and unyielding and fear inspiring teachings of Islam. Their suspicion and hatred of non-Muslims and western values seems almost innocently naïve because of the rock hard and inflexible Islamic teachings as revealed by Ali.
The book shows in one instance how we are faced with a culture that cannot be reasoned with, even on a non-hostile basis. Ali illustrates this by her example of the persistent failure of unemployed Dutch-Somali males who, having minimal skills and education, remain jobless in the plentiful job market of Holland. They are barely qualified for anything but menial jobs but when asked why they would not take the low end jobs offered their rationale was “We are Muslims and we are men. Both things make us superior to white men. Technical qualifications have nothing to do with it. It would be against the will of Allah for us to take orders from non-Muslims and from white people. We should be given jobs as doctors, lawyers and air line pilots.” This paraphrased statement is ludicrous or worse when taken at face value. But if we accept it as indicative of where they are honestly and sincerely coming from in all things we can begin to see how difficult it will be to mesh the two cultures without serious social eruptions. Likewise, since all Muslim thinking is religiously based, we receive a good clue regarding the sheer difficulty of logically dealing with them. We want them to assimilate and by training from birth they do not want to and, significantly, for religious reasons they cannot. The Koran says they will go to hell for befriending and cooperating with infidels.
All this leaves the bewildering question of why they come to live in western countries. Part of the reason, as Ali abundantly illustrates, is chaos and economic depression in their home countries. A companion reason must be the opportunity to live a more materially rewarding life but without understanding how this became possible. In other words there is no connection with the benefits of liberal democracy. Neither is there a connection of their homeland conditions with the influences and philosophies of their religion. So they arrive in our midst for economic opportunity while devoid of any foundation to take advantage of it or any enlightened ideals of how to achieve it. Perversely, their ideals remain the very values that made their old lives miserable and deprived. They see their new countries only as something to be taken advantage of from a Muslim perspective. They are unable to see that their values, when imposed on the new environment, will eventually return them to the chaos they left, a chaos their leaders blame on the very people who created the opportunity they seek. Rational analysis of this type seems to be beyond them.
To repeat, this is a wonderful, inspiring and thought provoking book.