About this title: The Arab-American Lisa Halaby married King Hussein in 1978, becoming Queen Noor of Jordan. In this memoir, she writes candidly about her life as the wife of a king, with insights into the politics of the Middle East as well as details of her humanitarian activism, her children's upbringing, and the sad death of her husband in 1999.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Miramax Books
Date Published: 03/2003
ISBN-13:9780786867172ISBN:0786867175
Description: Good in good dust jacket. Good, In good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 480 p. Contains: Illustrations. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Miramax Books
Date Published: 03/2003
ISBN-13:9780786867172ISBN:0786867175
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 480 p. Contains: Illustrations. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Miramax Books
Date Published: 03/2003
ISBN-13:9780786867172ISBN:0786867175
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 480 p. Contains: Illustrations. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Miramax Books
Date Published: 03/2003
ISBN-13:9780786867172ISBN:0786867175
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 480 p. Contains: Illustrations. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Miramax Books
Date Published: 03/2003
ISBN-13:9780786867172ISBN:0786867175
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 480 p. Contains: Illustrations. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Miramax Books
Date Published: 03/2003
ISBN-13:9780786867172ISBN:0786867175
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 480 p. Contains: Illustrations. read more
Binding: Trade paperback
Publisher: Miramax Books
Date Published: 2005
ISBN-13:9781401359485ISBN:1401359485
Description: Very good. No dust jacket as issued. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 496 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. No CANADIAN buyers, please! read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Miramax
Date Published: 2003-03-18
ISBN-13:9780786867172ISBN:0786867175
Description: Like New. Like new hardcover in dj. Previous owner's sticker on end paper, otherwise unblemished copy. Seemingly unused.; 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed! Free Delivery Confirmation! Ships same or next business day! read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Miramax
Date Published: 2003-03-18
ISBN-13:9780786867172ISBN:0786867175
Description: Very Good+ in Very Good+ jacket. VG+/VG+, no tears or chips to the DJ, several pages dogeared else interior clean and bright, binding tight, a wonderful copy throughout. read more
"This book is really fascinating. As other reviewers have noted, it is about an American-born woman with Arab roots who marries the King of Jordan.
Queen Noor's revelations about her day to day life as Queen of Jordan are fascinating. She tries to explain how she went from Lisa Halaby to Queen Noor, and I find her attempts at explaining her extraordinary life alternatively believable and frustrating. Believable because at the heart of it she truly does seem to love the King, in many ways they seem to be a good match, and with her Arab roots she does have some ties to (some of) the Jordanian people.
I feel really frustrated, though, with the parts of the book in which she makes it sound like becoming the Queen was as easy as putting on a different pair of shoes. For instance, when she discusses changing her name from Lisa to Noor. She says that the name Noor is the best gift the King ever gave her, that she was glad to give up her given name Lisa, and that she never felt attached to her original name and gladly became this new person. She also talks about her instinctive need early on to protect the king and squash her own needs to avoid adding to his stress. The eagerness with which she immediately abandons her own work, her name, and her own life is just a little too Stepford wife. It smacks a bit of both martyrdom and a deep subservience that suggests Daddy Issues or hero worship.
Some of the book's political overviews and commentary is helpful, but I cannot say how much I retained. Imagine reading about complex and centuries-old political issues of multiple countries featuring lots of people you've never heard of, combined with historical commentary of a time you can't remember, in a culture not your own, and it's a bit much to soak in. I am a bit embarrassed to admit that after reading her numerous and lengthy summaries of political events, it's pretty much in-one-ear-and-out-the-other for me. I think that is because the explanations (like the events themselves) are so long and convoluted that I eventually give up, feeling like I am never going to understand it anyway. Still, some knowledge is better than none at all, and I didn't expect to come away from reading this book with a deep understanding of the region's politics.
My cynical side insists that I note the definite hints of propaganda throughout the book. Naturally I do not expect her to be neutral, but her acccounts of King Hussein suggest that he was superhuman, and that Jordan was an innocent bystander in the many and varied Middle Eastern skirmishes. I'm skeptical of both. But it did give me a surface-level understanding of the deep and nuanced complexities of the Middle East, where no country is really innocent, each country has legitimate gripes, and there are no easy answers."
"I think it's safe to say that any Queen has an extraordinary life, but being a Queen in the Middle East during the most conflicted times of the 20th century has a unique place in history. Queen Noor's autobiography is a love story, not only the love of her husband and family but also her love of Jordan. The book chronicles her life from growing up in California to the death of her husband. Much of the book discusses relatively "normal" issues: a blended family with many stepchildren, having children, dealing with a spouse's illness, etc.
However, those issues, which make the Queen seem very down-to-earth, are offset by the incredible duties of a Queen in a developing nation and the Middle Eastern conflict. She served as a champion for women's rights, improving children's lives, and liberalizing the rule of law in Jordan. She also sought to boost the economy with these changes; she started a large arts festival to showcase traditional Jordanian artists which were mostly women. She also implemented a vaccination program for children and a public education system. Lastly, she called for greater freedom of the press. These were all truly progressive ideas in the Middle East, and she handled them with grace and care for Jordanian traditions and respect for the Islamic religion.
Living on a country bordering Israel and being married to a beloved King who passionately pursued peace in the Middle East gave her an incredible vantage point in the late 20th century. I am not very educated on the Middle Eastern conflicts, and her book gave me a better idea of the Arab perspective in layman's terms. She also effectively described the heartbreaking frustration of the peace negotiations between Arabs and Israelis.
It was a good read. The writing was decent, but her life has been incredible."
"I first picked up this book because I was able to hear Queen Noor speak at my sister graduation ceremony at William and Mary back on Mother's Day in 2003. I was very impressed by her as she spoke of the importance of mothers. I very much enjoyed the book even though I did not get as many of her thoughts on life like I had hoped. A lot of the book focused on Middle East opinion and conflicts which caught me off guard for I am not well versed in that area but after I got used to the idea I was actually glad to be able to better understand the issues of the area over the past 30+ years. The most touching part of the book was when she talked about her husband with his bout of cancer and subsequent death."
"Queen Noor speaks with candor as she details a remarkable insight into the middle-east region, her great love for her peace-loving husband and family and the people that they served together for 21 years. I lived through this period of history and since I was either pregnant or lactating through most of it, I took the opportunity to go back and do some internet reading along with this book and study this period in history. Overwhelming. I was warmed by the goodness of all humanity worldwide, and chilled by the deception of politics worldwide including our great country. I felt a great peace after reading this book, even though the events detailed are politically unsettling. Thank goodness for men and women who can see past the moment and protect peace for generations unborn."
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