She is horrified by the unhygienic conditions of Iran and the total misogynistic lack of rights of women, and the violent anti-American propaganda fed to the population She refuses offers to get out of this vile country unless she can take her daughter with her. It was a scary time to be a six-year-old, so my mom taught us how to memorize landmarks and phone numbers, even directions on how to get back to the international bridge, and what to tell authorities if my dad ever got a fit of the crazies.

Not only did she put herself and her daughter in this position but then she spent every year since then manipulating her daughter against her father! She made many friends, and even among her in-laws there were those who were sympathetic to her plight. Finding Mathob's account was much easier because it was available through various libraries; however, I had to actually purchase Betty's account because I was not as fortunate. This is Betty’s Mahmoody’s account and its a terrifying account and ordeal for any woman and child to have gone through. Her book, Not Without My Daughter, is an account of her experiences in 1984–86, when she left Alpena, Michigan to go to Iran with her husband and daughter for what she was promised would be a short visit.When the two weeks of the visit were up, Moody informed her that she and Mahtob would be staying in Iran with him. My memory is now a bit jaded, but I’m quite sure that the book is far better and can do more justice, as is usually the case. However, nothing is black and white and just because the way women are treated is abominable doesn't mean that everything in the culture is bad and everything the people do is wrong and horrible. Many people tell her to save herself and leave Mahtob but she recognizes that Moody is not a competent father and she knows that if she leaves Mahtob, she’ll grow up in his terrible family in Iran.

In August 1984, Michigan housewife Betty Mahmoody accompanied her husband to his native Iran for a two-week vacation that turned into a permanent stay. On a final note: I don't know why this is, but most who have read Not Without My Daughter are unaware that it has a sequel: For the Love of a Child. but to americans, the picture of a women in a headscarve is just not "frightening" enough to sell to its stupid sheep audience, so they use the veil cause it looks exotic and foriegn. Of course you cannot tar a country and its people with the one brush but I am sure this caused quite a stir at the time. Those who help her are vaguely described to protect their identities so it’s hard to connect with them.In late June, 1985, Moody, Betty, and Mahtob moved into their own apartment, limiting Moody's surveillance and giving Betty more freedom.

Betty Mahmoody and her husband, Dr Sayyed Bozorg Mahmoody ('Moody'), came to Iran from the USA to meet Moody's family. It never came to that, thank goodness, but films like Not Without My Daughter fascinated my grandparents, mom, brother and I. Sally Fields’s and Alfred Molina’s brilliant portrayals notwithstanding, as is often the case, the film adaptation of this story is an abridged and sanitized account, a faded husk of the tale you will encounter in the pages of this book. Take Norma Khoury's "autobiographical" book, "Honor Lost: Love and Death in Modern-Day Jordan," which purports to be a first-hand account by an Arab woman. Betty's account, on the other hand, provides details left out in the movie, such as Betty had two sons from a previous marriage and how she didn't see the signals of Moody's temperament change when they lived in the United States.

Not Without My Daughter is a biographical book by Betty Mahmoody detailing the escape of Betty and her daughter, Mahtob, from Betty's abusive husband in Iran. How she finally escapes, and the sympathetic friends she meets along the way will make your heart soar. On January 31, the smugglers drove Betty and Mahtob to a small village beyond Tabriz, where they spent the night. Albania, Algeria, American Samoa, Andorra, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Aruba, Australia, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, British Virgin Islands, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde Islands, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Comoros, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, European Union, Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas), Finland, France, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon Republic, Gambia, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Guernsey, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jersey, Jordan, Kenya, Kiribati, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Marshall Islands, Martinique, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mexico, Micronesia, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Morocco, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Niue, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Republic of Croatia, Republic of the Congo, Reunion, Romania, Saint Helena, Saint Kitts-Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Svalbard and Jan Mayen, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Vatican City State, Venezuela, Virgin Islands (U.