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  <name><![CDATA[Sherry Jones]]></name>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1219600.Sherry_Jones]]></link>
  <fans-count type="integer">1</fans-count>
  <followers-count type="integer">1</followers-count>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1222131162p5/1219600.jpg</image_url>
  <about><![CDATA[Sherry Jones is an American journalist.

Jones became the center of a national controversy in the summer of 2008 after Random House cancelled publication of her historical novel, &lt;i&gt;The Jewel of Medina&lt;/i&gt; about Aisha, a wife of the Prophet Muhammad.

According to the &lt;i&gt;Wall Street Journal&lt;/i&gt;, Random House had paid Jones a $100,000 advance for the novel when University of Texas Professor Denise Spellberg say a copy of the galleys and decided to &quot;warn Muslims&quot; of the pending publication of a novel that, in Spellberg's opinion, &quot;made fun of Muslims and their history.&quot; Random House immediately cancelled publication.

Beaufort Books published the book in the U.S. in October 2008. Publishers in Germany, Italy, Denmark, Spain, Poland, Serbia, Brazil, Portugal, Hungary, Macedonia, and Albania have followed. Publication is scheduled for September in Sweden, with a total of 20 publishers so far scheduled to publish the book. It has been a best-seller in Serbia, Croatia, Germany, and Spain.

A sequel, &quot;The Sword of Medina,&quot; continues the story of A'isha's life after Muhammad's death and the rivalry with his cousin, Ali, which led to the first Islamic civil war and the Sunni-Shia split. It has been published in Germany and Serbia, and is scheduled for publication in the U.S. in October. Publishers in Hungary, Denmark, Spain, and Italy have bought translation rights so far.

The controversy over her books has sent Jones on the lecture circuit, speaking in the U.S. and Europe on topics including free speech and censorship, women's rights in Islam, and racism.
]]></about>  <influences><![CDATA[Salman Rushdie, Arthur Golden, Eudora Welty, Fatima Mernissi]]></influences>  <gender>female</gender>  <hometown>Spokane, Washington</hometown>  <born_at>09/09/1961</born_at>    
  
  
  <books>
        <book id="3426706">
  <title><![CDATA[The Jewel of Medina]]></title>
  <authors>
    <author>
      <name><![CDATA[Sherry Jones]]></name>
      <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1219600.Sherry_Jones]]></link>
    </author>
      </authors>
  <average_rating>3.04</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>124</ratings_count>
  <published>2008</published>  
  
</book>
        <book id="6718210">
  <title><![CDATA[Joya de Medina, La]]></title>
  <authors>
    <author>
      <name><![CDATA[Sherry Jones]]></name>
      <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1219600.Sherry_Jones]]></link>
    </author>
      </authors>
  <average_rating>0.0</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>0</ratings_count>
  <published>2009</published>  
  
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        <book id="6818805">
  <title><![CDATA[A jóia de Medina]]></title>
  <authors>
    <author>
      <name><![CDATA[Sherry Jones]]></name>
      <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1219600.Sherry_Jones]]></link>
    </author>
      </authors>
  <average_rating>0.0</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>0</ratings_count>
    
  
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        <book id="6549158">
  <title><![CDATA[The Sword of Medina: A Novel]]></title>
  <authors>
    <author>
      <name><![CDATA[Sherry Jones]]></name>
      <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1219600.Sherry_Jones]]></link>
    </author>
      </authors>
  <average_rating>0.0</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>0</ratings_count>
  <published>2009</published>  
  
</book>
        <book id="2798257">
  <title><![CDATA[The Hiker's Guide to Montana's Continental Divide Trail]]></title>
  <authors>
    <author>
      <name><![CDATA[Sherry Jones]]></name>
      <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1219600.Sherry_Jones]]></link>
    </author>
        <author>
      <name><![CDATA[Sherry Jones]]></name>
      <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1651162]]></link>
    </author>
      </authors>
  <average_rating>0.0</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>0</ratings_count>
  <published>1990</published>  
  
</book>
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