{"product_id":"the-kurdish-bike-9780692758106","title":"The Kurdish Bike","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eGold Medal, Best Regional Fiction, Independent Publishers Book Awards 2017\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Prize, North Street Book Contest 2017\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBest Cultural Fiction, Readers' Favorites Book Awards (bronze) 2018\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Courageous teachers wanted to rebuild war-torn nation.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWith her marriage over and life gone flat, Theresa Turner responds to an online ad, and lands at a school in Kurdish Iraq. Befriended by a widow in a nearby village, 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, brutality and honor killings. 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.\u2028\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBased on true events, The Kurdish Bike is gripping, tender, wry and compassionate - an eye-opener into little-known customs in one of the world's most explosive regions - a novel of love, betrayal and redemption. San Francisco Book Review gave the book five stars and compared it to \u003cem\u003eThe Kite Runner\u003c\/em\u003e. The Manhattan Book Review also gave it five stars, and called it a \"must-read\" for anyone interested in the Middle East. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHighly recommended for book clubs. Contact author to request a Skype presentation to your book club.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAlesa Lightbourne has been an English professor and teacher in six countries, lived on a sailboat, dined with Bedouins, and written for Fortune 50 companies. She lives close to Monterey Bay in California, where she loves to boogie board and ride a bicycle.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Alesa Lightbourne","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50556344926482,"sku":"9780692758106","price":12.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_f5ac5a46-e1d0-4f0d-bb6d-abdb3d7745fc.jpg?v=1731752375","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/the-kurdish-bike-9780692758106","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}