ry. Mr. Duetchmann has changed the real names, places, and times to protect the innocent. It has many gruesome, graphic descriptions of disturbing violence. The reason for this violence stems from ancient cultural practices and tribal vendettasBecause of the degree and nature of this violence, this story needs to be told.

This book is the story of an Afghan girl, Maryam. Maryam was nearly a victim of a traditional honor killing at the hands of her brother, a concept alien to most Western cultures. She narrowly escaped that attempted killing, fled to Canada, and ended up coming to live with the author and his wife. Over the course of the first year with them, Maryam unraveled the story of the attempted honor killing. Entranced by the drama of the story, Mr. Duetchmann simply took notes which he translated into this book. It was gut-wrenching to hear Maryam narrate all of these horrific, real-life events. In addition, Maryam had suppressed many events before she came to Canada because her mind simply could cope with them. Several of the worst were revealed years later through counseling.

In the course of eight years of counseling, Maryam had several counselors and psychiatrists who are trained not to get emotionally involved with their patient. Maryam's story was so dramatic that each and every one of them cried freely. That is a measure of how traumatic her story is.