The Imam’s Daughter

Hannah Shah is the author of The Imam’s daughter. She lived a terrible life in a devout Pakistani Muslim family in England. Her father was the Imam on the street of Pakistani families. She described her father raping her in the cellar of their home from age six. Her mother upstairs knew what was happening below but was helpless. Her Iman husband would beat her if she interfeared. At sixteen, she discovered a plan to send her to Pakistan for an arranged marriage, and she gathered the courage to run away. Relentlessly hunted by her angry father and brothers, who were intent on executing an “honor” killing, she moved from house to house in perpetual fear to escape them. A Christian family took her in and she discovered a loving and peaceful way of life. Over time, she converted to Christianity and was able to live and marry as she wished. Hannah found the courage to live her life free from shame, free from religious intolerance, and free from the abuse that haunted her childhood. This is a remarkable true story of how a young girl escaped a life of torture … a story you won’t forget.

This is one of the best personal confessional stories I have ever read. I was glued to the book. I think I read it in two major sit-downs, and that’s pretty fast for me. Checking the start and end dates of the read it amounts to five days!

Hannah’s story is a window into a different world. Certainly not all Islamic families are this way, but there is no question that Islam played a part in the situation and how the events unfolded. Certainly not all Islamic fathers are abusive, controlling, and rapists, but Islam was certainly used to justify his behavior and, more importantly, allow the family and community to excuse it. Certainly not all Islamic families will attempt to kill their daughters over rebellion to a forced marriage, over family “honor,” and apostasy, but one hears way too many that do, and many are not as lucky as Hannah. While the events of Hannah’s story are at the extreme, the author lets us see the underlying logic and foundations of her community.

I grew to love Hannah. No child should ever be subject to such abuse, starting at the age of six. No woman should be subject to such control and what amounts to enslavement. It’s a tribute to Hannah’s shrewdness, desire for freedom, and survival instincts that she broke free of her repression. It’s a credit to her that she now works to help other women in such circumstances. It’s a credit to her that she has forgiven all, including her father, and come to a better understanding of Islam, which she finds in the ideal to be not as constraining as how her community practices it, though I wasn’t exactly convinced. It was such a relief to find that in the end she found love, happiness, and a religion that believes in a loving God.

This is not a book one would read “just for fun”. It is at times heart wrenching. However, Hannah is victorious in the end!