Defiance - by Loubna Mrie (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

"Defiance takes my breath away. A nail-biting tale of astonishing courage." --Jeannette Walls #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Glass Castle

"A heartbreaking account of a young woman's struggle for freedom against the rampaging forces of fanaticism and tyranny . . . Unforgettable." --Lawrence Wright, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Looming Tower and The Human Scale

A stunning memoir of personal rebellion and political awakening from a young woman raised to be loyal to a brutal regime--and the unimaginable cost of choosing freedom

Like any good Alawite girl, every day at school, Loubna Mrie pledged allegiance to Hafez al-Assad. When she complained about memorizing his speeches for class, she was told to shorten her tongue--without the president, her family believed, the Alawites would be persecuted by the Sunni majority, as they had been for centuries before the Assads came to power. A girl's role was to obey, not to question. Loubna's father, a mercurial businessman with close ties to the Assad regime, ruled over his wife and daughters with absolute authority. In their world, loyalty was sur-vival. Curiosity was blasphemy. Dissent was betrayal.

But everything changed in 2011, when the pro-democracy uprisings of the Arab Spring reached Syria. Unable to suppress her curiosity, Loubna attended an anti-government protest. What she witnessed--the courage, the brutality, and the lies that followed--ignited something in her that would not be extinguished. She joined the resistance, risking her life by fearlessly proclaiming her Alawite heritage and, later, as a photojournalist documenting the war for Reuters and other outlets. Her defiance would come at a devastating cost: the loss of loved ones, her community, and ultimately her country. Leaving behind everything she knew, she would have to find a new home within herself.

Defiance is the unforgettable account of one woman's fight for freedom--against a father, a dictator, and the weight of inherited belief. From the streets of Aleppo to exile in New York City, it offers an electrifying portrait of moral courage in the face of authoritarianism and violence. Told with clarity, fury, and grace, Defiance offers a rare ground-level portrait of what it means to wake up, to resist, and to become.

Review Quotes

Advance Praise for Defiance

"Mrie's narrative charts a struggle with many kinds of oppression . . . She captures the chaos of Syria's upheaval with raw immediacy and offers a heartbreaking excavation of [its] psychic wounds." --Publishers Weekly

"Mrie uses an exceptional eye for detail to evoke her surroundings . . . but the most remarkable aspect of Mrie's memoir is her unflinching honesty . . . [Defiance] will resonate with readers. --Library Journal (Starred Review)

"Loubna Mrie's story takes my breath away. Defiance is a nail-biting tale of astonishing courage, a coming-of-age story in which one woman risks everything to fight for what she believes." --Jeannette Walls, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Glass Castle and Hang the Moon

"Defiance is a heartbreaking account of a young woman's struggle for freedom against the rampaging forces of fanaticism and tyranny. It is also a literary triumph that marks the beginning of an exciting career. Every page is marked by blood and tears. It's unforgettable." --Lawrence Wright, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Looming Tower and The Human Scale

"Loubna Mrie has written an anthem against patriarchy and authoritarianism everywhere. Mrie's memoir, which couldn't be more aptly titled, embodies a young woman's contribution in the fight for freedom and for independence--both collective and individual. It is also a powerful account of surviving unfathomable losses--home, family, faith, love--and purposing the grief and rage that follows into action. This must-read debut shows us that revolutions start inside the home and that witnessing is the first line of resistance against oppression." --Javier Zamora, New York Times bestselling author of Solito

"Defiance is a profoundly moving meditation on the nature of rebellion and our indelible drive for freedom. Through the course of a beautiful, breathtaking narrative, Loubna Mrie comes to see her struggle against her abusive father and rigid gender structures as inseparable from the struggle against authoritarianism. Defiance is a modern coming-of-age story set in one of the most brutal wars on the planet, a truly affecting story of loss, redemption, and ultimately, hope. The book is an unforgettable chronicle of the spirit, one that will stay with you long after the final page." --Anand Gopal, author of the Pulitzer Prize finalist No Good Men Among the Living and Days of Love and Rage

About the Author

Loubna Mrie is a Syrian journalist, photographer, and writer, and a frequent commentator on Syrian and Middle Eastern affairs. The recipient of fellowships and residencies from Magnum Foundation, Ucross Foundation, and MacDowell, she has published work in The Atlantic, Rolling Stone, The Nation, Time, and the London Review of Books, among others.