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    Until We Are Free: My Fight for Human Rights in Iran
    Unavailable
    Until We Are Free: My Fight for Human Rights in Iran
    Unavailable
    Until We Are Free: My Fight for Human Rights in Iran
    Audiobook8 hours

    Until We Are Free: My Fight for Human Rights in Iran

    Written by Shirin Ebadi

    Narrated by Shohreh Aghdashloo and Shoreh Aghdashloo

    4/5

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    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    The first Muslim woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, Shirin Ebadi has inspired millions around the globe through her work as a human rights lawyer defending women and children against a brutal regime in Iran. Now Ebadi tells her story of courage and defiance in the face of a government out to destroy her, her family, and her mission: to bring justice to the people and the country she loves.

    For years the Islamic Republic tried to intimidate Ebadi, but after Mahmoud Ahmadinejad rose to power in 2005, the censorship and persecution intensified. The government wiretapped Ebadi's phones, bugged her law firm, sent spies to follow her, harassed her colleagues, detained her daughter, and arrested her sister on trumped-up charges. It shut down her lectures, fired up mobs to attack her home, seized her offices, and nailed a death threat to her front door. Despite finding herself living under circumstances reminiscent of a spy novel, nothing could keep Ebadi from speaking out and standing up for human dignity.

    But it was not until she received a phone call from her distraught husband-and he made a shocking confession that would all but destroy her family-that she realized what the intelligence apparatus was capable of to silence its critics. The Iranian government would end up taking everything from Shirin Ebadi-her marriage, friends, and colleagues, her home, her legal career, even her Nobel Prize-but the one thing it could never steal was her spirit to fight for justice and a better future. This is the amazing, at times harrowing, simply astonishing story of a woman who would never give up, no matter the risks. Just as her words and deeds have inspired a nation, Until We Are Free will inspire you to find the courage to stand up for your beliefs.

    Praise for Until We Are Free

    "Ebadi recounts the cycle of sinister assaults she faced after she won the Nobel Prize in 2003. Her new memoir, written as a novel-like narrative, captures the precariousness of her situation and her determination to 'stand firm.'"-The Washington Post

    "Powerful . . . Although [Ebadi's] memoir underscores that a slow change will have to come from within Iran, it is also proof of the stunning effects of her nonviolent struggle on behalf of those who bravely, and at a very high cost, keep pushing for the most basic rights."-The New York Times Book Review

    "Shirin Ebadi is quite simply the most vital voice for freedom and human rights in Iran."-Reza Aslan, author of No god but God and Zealot

    "Shirin Ebadi writes of exile hauntingly and speaks of Iran, her homeland, as the poets do. Ebadi is unafraid of addressing the personal as well as the political and does both fiercely, with introspection and fire."-Fatima Bhutto, author of The Shadow of the Crescent Moon

    "I would encourage all to read Dr. Shirin Ebadi's memoir and to understand how her struggle for human rights continued after winning the Nobel Peace Prize. It is also fascinating to see how she has been affected positively and negatively by her Nobel Prize. This is a must read for all."-Desmond Tutu

    "A revealing portrait of the state of political oppression in Iran . . . [Ebadi] is an inspiring figure, and her suspenseful, evocative story is unforgettable."-Publishers Weekly (starred review)

    "Ebadi's courage and strength of character are evident throughout this engrossing text."-Kirkus Reviews


    From the Hardcover edition.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateMar 8, 2016
    ISBN9780399568947
    Unavailable
    Until We Are Free: My Fight for Human Rights in Iran

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    Reviews for Until We Are Free

    4/5

    19 ratings5 reviews

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    • 4/5
      It is candidate election time here in the USA and one from each party will be our next president. If there is only one thing, and there was in fact many more, that this book highlighted, it was the importance of the government leader. This amazing woman won the Nobel prize for peace in Iran and her life changed with his subsequent leader. Once a judge, she was basically forced out and started her own group as a legal advisor for those who could not get justice under Iran's constantly changing legal system. I often think of the randomness of where we were born, our race, what country we live in. How lucky I am to be here and not there. But, this remarkable woman loves her country, her people and continues to fight despite threats to herself, her husband, her daughters. Many left, she stayed because leaving would be giving up. This is am very candid story, personal and professional, and provides a look inside Iran, the corruption, religious views, the fears and the small victories. I found it quite eye opening.ARC from Netgalley.
    • 5/5
      Shirin Ebadi was an eminent jurist, law professor, expert in Sharia law, and judge in Iran and winner of the Nobel Peace prize. She records her anguished journey through the gauntlet of regime changes that forced compliance with a hypocritical interpretation of Islam and a denial of the role of women in Iranian society. She was demoted to a clerk but continued valiantly to support human rights, suffering the loss of friends and family, divorce and finally exile. Her detractors, particularly those in Iranian intelligence never gave up but neither did she. Her narrative is a riveting as any spy mystery novel but true. I recommend this book to anyone who is searching for a role model of a professional woman of courage and outstanding moral probity.I was provided with an electronic copy in return for an honest review.
    • 4/5
      Until We Are Free This is the first book of my new challenge to read all the women Nobel laureates! It was a great start. While Ebadi does cover her level of involvement in setting up the Nobel Women's Iniative, One Million Signatures, and later the establishment of the Center of the Defenders of Human Rights, this is mostly a memoir of her life during these times. She talks more about big life changes, her fears and her outrages, and the overall state of women in Iran. It's not the book I thought it was, but that's not a bad thing.
      This book is mainly about what happened after she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2003. As eluded to above, the government Iran was not pleased with her award and her work and the way it all made them look. She became a target and so did everyone around her, not that it stopped everyone from doing the work that needed to be done. This was a great book about her personal struggles and the rationale behind many of Ebadi's decisions. It also provides an interesting insight into the events that were dubbed the "Arab Spring".
      I listened to the audiobook, read by Shohreh Aghdashloo. I didn't recognize her name but Aghdashloo has been in several movies and tv shows. Her voice had been somewhat familiar but I recognized her face right away. The link will take you to her IMDB. She does a great job narrating the book. As always, I appreciate getting to listen to names in other cultures that I would not only butcher but not get a chance to hear how gorgeous they can be.
      I would have liked to hear more about Ebadi's work and details on some speaking engagements, but the lack of that information didn't deter from being able to appreciate the book and what she does tell us. She continues to work for Iran through the center mentioned above, visit their site for updates on her work and statements.
    • 5/5
      I needed this education about Iran and what a wonderful way to learn about it. Ebadi writes with emotion and depth---she is committed to such an impressive degree in what she is doing for what is truly her life's work. This is a remarkable book to read right now---partly because it is so easy to see how the country you live in and believe in can be so easily be turned on its head with frightening consequences for its citizens.
    • 4/5
      The Iranian people that I have met have been generally warm, friendly and welcoming. The country that they come from though is one of the most authoritarian on the planet with the invasive and pervasive monitoring of the population by the Ministry of Intelligence and draconian religious enforcement by the countries spiritual leaders. This powerful and emotive book is the part of the life story of Dr Shirin Ebadi, an Iranian activist and human rights lawyer. She is a strong willed and a lady of immense personal integrity and she has challenged every step of the way the total power that Iranian state thinks it should have.

      She has fought tirelessly over the years for the elements in society that we take for granted; democracy, freedom of speech and most importantly in that country equality. Her work for those at the very bottom of society, the plight of Baha'is and women has been an inspiration across the globe, so much so, that she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her relentless work. This did not go unnoticed by the authorities and the Ministry of Intelligence. They bugged her offices and home and made sure that her activities were disrupted and her and her staff and family were intimidated frequently. One man, Mahmudi, seems to have made it his personal mission to hound her to the end of the earth. Little did she know at the time, but a trip to Majorca would be the last time she saw her beloved country.

      This book is very moving, not only do we get to see the side of Iran that few of us know about, but we see just how fractured it has become under the continuing despotic leadership. Ebadi writes with a passion and eloquence about her circumstances, the constant hounding that her husband and daughters have had to endure because of the stand that she has taken and the situation in the country. She is even intimidated by them whilst in exile. I would urge people to read this, not just to get an insight to another country in turmoil, but to see what the true face of humanity is and the courage of a woman who has chosen to stand up for her beliefs.