Download The Abu Dhabi Bar Mitzvah: Fear and Love in the Modern Middle East AudioBook Free
Equipped only with school Arabic and restless curiosity, Adam Valen Levinson attempt to "find out about the entire world 9/11 made us dread." From a base in globalized and sterilized Abu Dhabi, he packages out to lunchtime in Taliban territory in Afghanistan, travels under the watchful eyeball of Aleppo's key police, dangers shipwreck en route to Somalia, investigates Yazidi beliefs in a sacred cave, cliff-dives in Oman, celebrates New Year's Eve in Tahrir Square, and, at every move, discovers a place that matches not at all with its reputation. While politicians and marketing eagerly stoke the flames of Islamophobia, Valen Levinson crosses borders with abundant laughter and humanity. Seeking common ground everywhere, he discovers that folks who pray in another way often laugh the same. And as a man pub mitzvahed at 21 (instead of the usual 13), he gradually learns how childish it is to live by decisions and distinctions created of fear.
