Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali

"One November morning in 2004, Theo van Gogh got up to go to work at his film production company in Amsterdam. He took out his old black bicycle and headed down a main road. Waiting in a doorway was a Moroccan man with a handgun and two butcher knives.

"As Theo cycled down the Linnaeusstraat, Muhammad Bouyeri approached. He pulled out his gun and shot Theo several times. Theo fell off his bike and lurched across the road, then collapsed. Bouyeri followed. Theo begged, 'Can't we talk about this?' but Bouyeri shot him four more times. Then he took out one of his butcher knives and sawed into Theo's throat. With the other knife, he stabbed a five-page letter onto Theo's chest.

"The letter was addressed to me."

So opens the compelling autobiography of Ayaan Hirsi Ali as told in the book Infidel. Ali tells he story as she journeys from a young woman growing up in Somalia under European colonialism, changing governments, and warring clans to moving to Holland (and eventually America) and taking such a bold stand against Islam that she and her friends become targeted by the Muslim community just as in the story above. In fact while living in Holland, the citizens petitioned the government to revoke her citizenship as a result of her targeted status because they felt that her presence in their community placed them at risk as well.

I began reading this book yesterday on the recommendation of a lady at work and so far I have not been disappointed. I stayed up a bit later last night than I should have reading it. It really is an eye-opening page-turner. I will write a more in-depth book review as soon as I finish reading it. So far, however, I am really enjoying what I am learning about the Islamic culture.