Laughing Without an Accent: Adventures of an Iranian American, at Home and Abroad by Firoozeh DumasMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Another real good bunch of stories by the Iranian-American writer, Firoozeh Dumas. She's a sterling example of a true global citizen with a fresh, innovative, creative, and, at times, uproariously funny sense of humor. Having lived in Iran for 3 years and having visited it again 3x in the last 10 years, I find her writing very poignant, refreshing, and sometimes a trip down memory lane. I love Iranians and Iranian culture and food and history. The Bible has significant sections with connections to the great Iranian kings/people. Jews have been living in Iran since the days of King Cyrus, who began ruling over them following his defeat of the Babylonians who had carried thousands of them (with all the treasures from King Solomon's Temple) into exile. Biblical characters of epic proportions: Daniel & his 3 friends, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther & her uncle Mordecai, Cyrus & Darius & Xerxes & Artaxerxes, to name a few.
I loved Firoozeh's last chapter called "444 Days" chronicling her time spent with one of the 1979 Iranian hostages, Kathryn Koob. They spent some time together in Iowa, where Koob is a teacher, and hosted Firoozeh for a night in her home. Koob is another great example of a truly global citizen--one with a wonderful biblical worldview and a love for other people/cultures. Including, Firoozeh points out to her surprise, a love for Iranians and even for her former captors. Why? Because she really not only believes in Jesus & His words, but acts on them: "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you." Ah, how refreshing! Firoozeh quotes her as saying that she believes that wars are mostly fought against people who don't know each other--because it's very hard to kill people you know and have come to respect & love. "Glimpses of shared humanity make it so hard to kill others." A world of wisdom in digest form. Thank you, Firoozeh.
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