Betty Mahmoody's - Not Without My Daughter

Genre : True Story
Rating : 5/5

My Mom-in-law, an avid reader, almost forced me to read this book ;) She has brilliant choice of books and it is her collection of books that kindled my interest in reading. Couple of weeks back, when I told her about - Mariane Pearl's Mighty Heart she said, 'You HAVE to read Not without my daughter. I am positive that the book won't let you down!'. And guess what, she was 100% right. It is one of the most compelling stories (true) I ever heard or read of!

The story displays the courage of the woman to escape from Iran, the struggle of the wife to get freedom from her husband and the love of the mother for her daughter. That woman, wife and mother are one personality - author herself - Betty Mahmoody.

Betty, an American divorcee and mother of two sons meets an Iranian Dr Sayyed Bozorg Mahmoody or 'Moody'. Moody had been staying in America for last 20 years and was completely Americanized. They fall in love and get settled in Michigan as husband-wife. Eventually they have a daughter named Mahtob. Everything is honky-dory until Moody's nephew comes from Iran to Michigan for his surgery. After nephew's stay, Betty sees drastic behavioral change in Moody. Moody who was once very reluctant to visit his family in Iran suddenly accepts nephew's invitation to visit Iran for two weeks. Betty has a feeling that Moody would plan to settle in Iran and would not return back. But only after Moody swears on the holy Koran that he will not keep her or their daughter there, Betty agrees to fly with him. On August 1984 Betty, Mahtob and Moody set to visit Moody's family in Iran. Right from the first step on the soil of Iran, Betty loathes it. She dislikes his family, the surrounding filthiness, Iranian culture, their dress code, the pitiful treatment towards females. Same things bother Mahtob (who is now 4 yrs) too. On the day of returning when Betty and Mahtob are ecstatically packing their luggage Moody breaks the news that he has lost his job in America and has now decided to settle in Iran. Devastated by this, Betty decides to go back with Mahtob. But Moody denies. When Betty rebels, Moody entraps her in his sister’s house. As Moody doesn’t have any house in Iran he stays with his nephews. He either keeps Betty under house arrest or shepherds her everywhere she wants to go. Sensing that Betty would influence Mahtob against Moody, he keeps them separate for couple of days. It was heartbreaking to see Moody change from loving husband/father to a beast. At times he ruthlessly beats them both and declares in public that he will kill Betty. None of their relatives come to Betty's rescue saying that - Moody is her husband and he has the rights to treat his wife as per his wish.

Clandestinely Betty tries to meet U.S embassy people but they are helpless against the Iranian law which states that Betty cannot do anything against her husband's wish. The only way that is open to get outta the country was to divorce Moody. But as per Iranian government, in case of divorce, father takes the custody of the child. In no way Betty is ready to sacrifice her daughter for her freedom. As the days pass by she displays the liking for Iranian style of living and acquiesces to everything that Moody says. But inside, every minute she concocts plans to get out of Iran, to get out of Moody's life. Gaining Moody's confidence enuff to move around in the city all by herself to run errands, she stealthily uses Hamid (a shopowner's) telephone to call embassy people. Betty tells Hamid about her being trapped and as a good samaritan he helps in every means that he can.

Now couple of people come to know about Betty's plight and offer to help her in escape, but Betty lets down their offer coz their plans had no Mahtob! Except one lawyer - Amahl who promises to smuggle Betty along with her daughter, into Turkey. Months pass by and he is not able to make any arrangements for their escape. Then one day, Moody tells Betty to go to America to visit her folks and get some $s by selling Moody & Betty's property in America. Betty gets ecstatic .. but Moody makes her go all by herself, without Mahtob. Unwilling to leave her child with Moody, Betty refuses to go. Against her wish Moody books her flight ticket and makes it clear that she doesnt have any other choice. With just two days left in hand Betty secretly takes Mahtob with her to Amahl and compels him to get her out.

Betty and Mahtob's journey after that is deadening. Their travel through the snow, their journey through the mountains, their encounter with strangers.. everything.. brings goose bumps all over the body. They have to stay without food for days. It is hard to fathom the difficulties this mother-daughter duo faces to run away from the man, to whom once they proudly referred as husband / father.

Betty's courage is laudable but Mahtob's behaviour is more admirable. That four year kid was lot matured for her age. She always stayed by her mother. She could understand the pains of Betty. She kept her mother's visits to embassy and clandestine phone calls as a top secret. On her ardous journey to reach Turkey border she never complained about the hunger or about the cold. Time to time Mahtob has displayed her maturity. I really liked her!

And after being almost kidnapped for 18 months Betty manages to reach America WITH her daughter.

The book has well chroniclized the events in Betty's life in Iran, hopscotching when necessary into their past happy marriage life. It is totally gripping and even after you have read the last page Betty and Mahtob do not leave your mind. You can not help pondering over the harsh reality of female lives in Iran. May be there was little exaggeration in describing Iran and its culture. May be the unhygene was confined to Moody's family and few others and not to all the Iranians. May be the Iranian men were not as cruel as male characters in this book but I just gave little discount to Betty's words for Iran (and its people) and moved with the story. Unless we hear Moody's side of the story it would not be fair to say Betty was right in whatever she did. However, this story has certainly made Moody look as a self-centered cruel person.

Not Without My Daughter is for those who appreciate the freedom-struggle stories.