The Fox Hunt

A refugee's memoir about hope, fear, luck, and the devotion of people to causes larger than themselves.Al Samawi grew up in a traditional, highly devoted Muslim family in Sana'a, Yemen. Because of a childhood illness, he was partially paralyzed on one side of his body. He focused all his attention on his studies and on being a dutiful son, and he grew up not questioning what he had been taught about the dangers and evils of Jews and Westerners. The first half of this compelling memoir tells of the author's life growing up in a tumultuous political and social environment. In the second half of the book, which is what makes it so powerful, Al Samawi chronicles how he became a peace activist, hiding his desire to know and understand Jews, Christians, and others committed to peace and reconciliation. At the epicenter of this story is his escape from the civil war in Yemen in 2015. He was trapped in his apartment and relied on a network of fellow peace activists, many of them Jews and Westerners spread across the globe, who helped him make his way through a nightmare of violence, bureaucratic indifference, and international chaos, not to mention numerous death threats. Had he been caught, he likely would have been identified as an active campaigner for human rights with deep and growing connections to peace movements and suspect alliances, all of which would have surely led to his death. The author is exceptionally earnest--perhaps too much so for some readers--with a tendency to reproduce lengthy conversations from years ago. Nonetheless, he is an effective, engaging narrator with an important story to tell.Gracious and generous, this personal account of a remarkable life is a reminder of how peace comes in small increments as the result of the work of committed individuals.

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April 15, 2018

Raised a devout Muslim in the Old City of Sana'a, Yemen, Al Samawi contemned Judaism until he began reading a Bible someone sneaked him. Reaching out to Jews on social media and attending interfaith conferences soon brought him death threats and forced him to flee to Aden. As civil war rent that city, he again turned to social media, and four young people, inexperienced but bold, worked across six platforms and ten time zones to save him. Now he's in America, working for various NGOs, and his story has been bought by the producer of La La Land.

Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from April 15, 2018

Part memoir, part real-life thriller, Al Samawi's breathtaking account begins in Sana'a, Yemen, where the author was born and raised and led a typical life as a Zaidi Shia Muslim. In college, he begins to meet people from other cultures and to question his childhood learnings. This new awareness creates a desire to work in interfaith matters fostering a commonality among Jews, Christians, and Muslims. These efforts, however, result in death threats, and when the civil war in Yemen intensifies, Al Samawi reaches out to friends to help him leave his home country. Over the course of two weeks, through the use of social media, they create a network of U.S. Senators, Indian officials, and others to get the author aboard a boat to Djibouti in East Africa. Throughout, readers learn about Yemeni history, doctrinal differences between Shia and Sunni Muslims, geopolitics of the Middle East, and Al Samawi's family. VERDICT This debut memoir is engaging and tragic yet full of hope as a worldwide effort is undertaken to save Al Samawi's life. A triumphant work that will appeal to a broad general readership.--Jacqueline Parascandola, Univ. of Virginia, Charlottesville

Copyright 2018 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from March 15, 2018
Growing up in Yemen, the son of a prominent family, the author is schooled to hate Jews and the West. But when a respected British teacher gives him a Bible, he is stunned by its many parallels with the Qur'an. Filled with questions, he turns to social media, where he is able to connect for the first time with Jews to find answers and become further enlightened. Inspired, he takes employment with humanitarian NGOs and begins attending international conferences, efforts that lead to death threats. Much worse is to come, however, when Yemen erupts into civil war, and Al Samawi finds himself a potential target of enemy forces. To spare his northern family from peril by association, he travels to southern Yemen, where he finds his life in even graver danger. Helpless, he once again turns to social media and discovers four young Americans who selflessly adopt his cause and go to incredible lengths to help him escape Yemen. The resulting story is nail-bitingly suspenseful, as effort after effort fails, and the fighting intensifies. Team Mohammed never gives up hope, however, and Al Samawi's ultimate escape is inspiring, as is his determination to continue to work for international peace and understanding. Illuminating and essential reading.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)