"What would you do if you could do anything in the world," the main character is asked at the outset by her college-age son. The author is a passionate supporter of women's causes in rural Kurdistan, and is committed to helping the people described in the book create a better life for themselves. Groups as diverse as public libraries, university groups, churches, women's clubs, community service groups, retirement homes and humanist societies have enjoyed her talks on Kurdish culture. The author gives frequent presentations to book groups throughout Central California, and also to international audiences via Skype. Like Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner, The Kurdish Bike is highly recommended for book clubs. The Kurdish Bike is the winner of the Gold Medal for Best Regional eBook from Independent Publishers, and First Prize in the North Street Book Awards. Although its themes are serious, it is also filled with humor, cultural insights and stories of resilience. The Kurdish Bike is gripping, tender, wry and compassionate, an eye-opener into little-known customs in Kurdistan and the Middle East- one of the world's most explosive regions - a novel of love, betrayal and redemption. Theresa's greatest challenge will be balancing respect for cultural values while trying to introduce more enlightened attitudes toward women - at the same time seeking new spiritual dimensions within herself.
When she is befriended by a village widow, Theresa is embroiled in the joys and agonies of traditional Kurds, especially the women who survived Saddam's genocide only to be crippled by age-old restrictions, female genital mutilation (FGM), brutality and honor killings. She yearns to experience a more "real" Kurdistan, and buys a bicycle, which lets her explore the nearby villages and countryside. Responding to an online ad asking for "courageous teachers to help rebuild a war-torn country," she finds herself working in a repressive school for elites. Based on a true story, The Kurdish Bike follows Theresa Turner, an American teacher who takes a job in northern Iraq in 2010. This award-winning novel is quickly becoming a book club favorite, and is widely considered to be the definitive classic on modern village Kurds.
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