Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.

Start by marking “I Was Told to Come Alone: My Journey Behind the Lines of Jihad” as Want to Read:

Other editions

Enlarge cover

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Open Preview

I Was Told to Come Alone: My Journey Behind the Lines of Jihad

by Souad Mekhennet

4.68 · Rating Details · 135 Ratings · 34 Reviews

"I was told to come alone. I was not to carry any identification, and would have to leave my cell phone, audio recorder, watch, and purse at my hotel. . . ."

For her whole life, Souad Mekhennet, a reporter for The Washington Post who was born and educated in Germany, has had to balance the two sides of her upbringing - Muslim and Western. She has also sought to provide a me ...more

Hardcover, 368 pages

Published June 13th 2017 by Henry Holt and Co.

More Details... edit details

Get a copy:

Or buy for

Win a Copy of This Book

I Was Told to Come Alone by Souad Mekhennet

I Was Told to Come Alone: My Journey Behind the Lines of Jihad
by Souad Mekhennet

Release date: Jun 13, 2017

Enter for a chance to win I WAS TOLD TO COME ALONE by Souad Mekhennet. A journalist for The Washington Post, Souad goes behind the lines of jihad, and ...more

Enter Giveaway

Format: Print book

Giveaway ends in: a

Availability: 5 copies available, 762 people requesting

Giveaway dates: Jul 06 - Jul 14, 2017

Countries available: US

View details »

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Reader Q&A

To ask other readers questions about I Was Told to Come Alone, please sign up.

Be the first to ask a question about I Was Told to Come Alone

Lists with This Book

This book is not yet featured on Listopia. Add this book to your favorite list »

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30)

filter | sort: default (?) | Rating Details

Jun 12, 2017 Maggie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: non-fiction, teacher-resources, favorites, reviewed-by-me, make-into-a-movie-please, kindle-read-done-finito

ScrappyMags.com one of my best of 2017!!!

Scrappymags 3-word review: Alarming. Entrancing. Disturbing.

Genre: Non-fiction/Memoir

Shortest summary ever: Our author Souad Mekhennet is a reknowned German journalist who has written for many top publications like the NYTimes and Washington Post. Her many interviews with Jihadists and insiders in ISIS and Al Queda is astounding. She grills them, asking important questions, trying to remain unbiased, veering to that key question, “Why do they hate us so m ScrappyMags.com one of my best of 2017!!!

Scrappymags 3-word review: Alarming. Entrancing. Disturbing.

Genre: Non-fiction/Memoir

Shortest summary ever: Our author Souad Mekhennet is a reknowned German journalist who has written for many top publications like the NYTimes and Washington Post. Her many interviews with Jihadists and insiders in ISIS and Al Queda is astounding. She grills them, asking important questions, trying to remain unbiased, veering to that key question, “Why do they hate us so much?”

What’s good under the hood: This should be required reading. Everything is good. I was visibly tensing despite knowing she is safe (duh she’s written this book). My anxiety level was at an 8, nearly too high for me to settle down to read, yet I flipped through pages like a Tom Clancy novel. Written with candor and class, Mekhennet’s story captures her Muslim upbringing, which I appreciated, because as much as journalists (and myself as a teacher) try to stay unbiased, we have them and Mekhennet made clear statements about how difficult this was for her. Her own memoir as a Muslim youth was notable, where often she was ostracized in German society. In that respect, she could understand some of the anger jihadists grew living (and born in) Western nations feeling unwelcomed, but her upbringing (with strong parents and the beauty of Islam) turned her one way, while jihadists turned another. The book then focuses on her travels while reporting, the many faces of both sides of the story from those in the government to those in the middle of the desert – hiding. Straight up jihadists. I remember a professor telling me in college, “One person’s terrorist is another’s freedom fighter” and Mekhennet touches on this, staying in the middle yet challenging both sides with issues of torture, lack of due process, and questioning the logic of jihadist views that oppose mainstream Islam along with their depolorable actions. Her experience shows a balance of both sides, yet make it clear – she does NOT support terrorism in any shape or form, but the book vividly shows WHY these jihadists came to be. The remaining question is – how do we deal with this on a global scale?

Watch for the lines of Mekhennet’s marriage proposals/wooing by jihadists and government officials. It adds just a touch of laughter in an otherwise serious and intelligently laudable narrative.

What’s bad or made me mad: The surprising part, nothing was the author’s fault that made me mad, it was merely the truth that angered me. Mad at Western governments for not caring about Muslim people and mad at jihadists for spreading terror and hate. In that respect, it’s a thinking book, and it will pull at your mind long after the final page.

Recommend to:

Everyone. Most appropriate for those age 16 and up as it does mention jihadist beheadings.
I used to teach AP Human Geography and this would be a fantastic book to read for that class or many Poli Sci classes (Politics and Revolution).
Anyone looking to answer the question “why do they hate us?” It certainly opens that question to consideration and understanding.

Read with an open mind and always try to place yourself in the life of the “other” person. My remaining questions are how to reach these youth who turn to radicalism and not a more positive path and how do we hold all accountable for atrocities, both jihadists and those who commit crimes under the guise of “government”. Those thoughts haunt me…

Sincere “shukraan” to NetGalley, Henry Holt and Co. and the Ms. Mekhennet for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review and for making me consider, think, ponder, wonder and feel. ...more

flag 6 likes · Like · see review

Jun 20, 2017 Fran Soto rated it it was amazing

I won this book on Goodreads. I could barely put this down. It is a Muslim woman journalist's account of her exploration of jihadists, al-Quada and ISIS. Everyone should read this book for a better understanding of why much of the rest of the world hates America and Americans so much. I highly recommend this, and I especially hope that government and military leaders will read it.

flag 5 likes · Like · see review

May 28, 2017 Rachel Dows rated it it was amazing

Shelves: giveaways

This one was slow going, but definitely worth it. It was fascinating, but a thinker. Several times I had to put this down and get a little distance because the topics hit so close to home. As someone who has tried to gain a full understanding of the Muslim faith, this account sharply highlights the struggles that modern Islam faces in the modern world.

More than anything, this book is fair. It truly delves deeply into all sides of every argument. Mekhennet searches for truth above all else, and ...more

flag 5 likes · Like · see review

Jun 30, 2017 Maree rated it it was amazing

This is definitely a book I feel like all Americans should read in this day and age. Other people too, of course, but I think it makes a couple great points that Americans are often light on, coming from an outside/inside perspective, and detailing a lot of the background on the Middle East that many (including myself) are fuzzy on.

The background on how we got to this point, following Mekhennet's journey as a reporter, is just fascinatingly well-told and fairly easy to follow. From her perspecti This is definitely a book I feel like all Americans should read in this day and age. Other people too, of course, but I think it makes a couple great points that Americans are often light on, coming from an outside/inside perspective, and detailing a lot of the background on the Middle East that many (including myself) are fuzzy on.

The background on how we got to this point, following Mekhennet's journey as a reporter, is just fascinatingly well-told and fairly easy to follow. From her perspective, you can see a lot of the warning signs and understand why the US wasn't greeted with thrown rose petals in the streets, as our VP at the time had said would happen. There's no judgement passed, just truth in reporting.

You can see the unrest, the changes that took place after dictators were felled. I was particularly surprised to note that under many of the dictators, women tended to be a lot more free; the rights of minorities were protected a fair amount under many of them. It wasn't until the more extreme majority religious groups took over that women had to start wearing the full religious coverings and stopped being able to hold offices, etc. There was a lot of movement backwards in terms of equality when these dictators (who, granted, killed people who opposed them and were corrupt in many other ways) were toppled, and the stability that those countries had seen under them vanished into a new system of confusion.

Just makes me think of the prime directive to not interfere in other cultures that you do not understand.

In addition to learning about the backgrounds of many of the current situations we find ourselves in with Middle East countries, there were a couple quotes that I picked out that really spoke to me, mostly about the perspective of the media and public reaction to reporting:

"Could this kind of impartial journalism about jihadists and the War on Terror be safely practiced in the West only by someone whose parents had been born and raised there, rather than someone whose Muslim descent made her and object of special interest and suspicion? ...These were dark thoughts that made me question the foundations and ultimate success of the West's supposed openness to outsiders and its commitment to freedom of speech and thought." p155

Mekhennet clearly shows that her Muslim descent was an advantage in her reporting. She was able to get interviews others were not because of her understanding of religion and because of her background. But it's also not a bad thing to look at reporting and examine it with a critical eye, as she says herself in regard to citizen journalism:

"'Citizen journalism' seemed to be the new big thing, but I worried about what such activist reporting would do to what we call the 'truth.' If readers and viewers got used to a kind of journalism that told them only one side of the story, how would their views of the world change?" p226

I realize that reporting for the Washington Post and NYT is not the same, but I think it's fair to think about the motives of reporters, especially in this day and age. At the same time, it's obviously ridiculous to group all Muslims in with terrorists, which some famous people we won't mention have done many times.

Overall, be thoughtful in your readings. Don't make assumptions, but don't be blind, either. This book can help a lot of people better understand where we are now and how we got there, and ideally would help prevent us from making the same mistakes in the future. Though I'm not sure how often we actually learn from history. :-/ ...more

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Jul 12, 2017 Raghu rated it it was amazing

This book is unique in many ways. It is even difficult to classify it. It is part autobiography, part memoir, part sociology that mediates between two cultures which are at odds with each other today, and a substantive contribution to some of the highest quality investigation and reporting from behind the inaccessible Jihadi frontlines in the Middle East. I found it a thrilling read, wanting to put it down only reluctantly when something more important needed my attention. Author Souad Mekhennet This book is unique in many ways. It is even difficult to classify it. It is part autobiography, part memoir, part sociology that mediates between two cultures which are at odds with each other today, and a substantive contribution to some of the highest quality investigation and reporting from behind the inaccessible Jihadi frontlines in the Middle East. I found it a thrilling read, wanting to put it down only reluctantly when something more important needed my attention. Author Souad Mekhennet is a German born Muslim, whose mother is Turkish Shia and father, a Moroccan Sunni. She has been a Washington Post and New York Times correspondent on contract at different times and speaks Arabic, German, French and English. The insights and perspectives in this book are a timely contribution in today’s highly polarized atmosphere in many communities in Western countries, in the middle-east, in North Africa and in South Asia.

The book’s main theme comes from trying to answer the question that has been posed for many years now - the question of ‘Why do They hate us so much?’. Unlike most other journalists and experts, Mekhennet realizes that she cannot find an answer unless she takes the big risks of journeying deep inside the hotbeds of Islamic extremism in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Algeria, Egypt and Pakistan. Interestingly, the more she journeys to the middle east, the more she realizes that she needs to come back to the German, French and Belgian neighbourhoods in Hamburg, Paris and Molenbeek to understand the complete picture. She disregards personal safety to reach out to individuals in the inner circles of Al Qaeda, the Taliban, ISIS and their affiliates in order to get their side of the story. She uses her assets of being a Muslim, an Arabic speaker and her Moroccan ethnicity to gain permissions for the elusive interviews which are denied to journalists of non-Muslim origin. Oddly, her being a woman helps as well with some extremists wanting to even take her as a ‘second wife’! More seriously, it is her passionate commitment not to take sides in this war on terror and her compassion towards all victims in this ‘war’, whether Western or Muslim civilians, whether Sunni or Shia or Arab or Persian, that opens so many doors for her in the hearts and minds of the jihadis. As a result, we get a book that is deep in its exploration into the problems relating to ‘why they hate us so much?’. Her interviews are mainly with Sunni extremists and not with major Shia groups like Hezbollah, the Houthis in Yemen or others supported by Iran. Hence, the question ‘why they hate us?’ is basically answered by ‘why the Sunni extremists hate us?’.

After reading the book, I would say that the main catalysts for the intense anger that Sunni Islamists around the world feel towards the West are as follows:
1. The way the Western countries deal with Islam and Islamic nations, particularly Palestine, which is seen as exhibiting blatant double standards.
2. The West’s military actions in the Middle-east which have emasculated Sunnis and helped the Shiites to emerge as the dominant power in the Gulf, causing serious dislocation of millions of Sunnis, rape of their women, torture, kidnappings and destruction of their economic well-being
3. Incarceration, physical torture and livelihood destruction of innocent Muslims on suspicion of being terrorists in many Western countries
4. Acute alienation among European Sunni Muslims due to joblessness, poverty, broken homes and ghettoisation.
5. Incessant wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and now Syria, not to mention drone strikes in Yemen, Pakistan and Afghanistan killing large numbers of civilians.

The Sunni extremists see the the United States, the US-backed Iraqi Shias, Iran and any nation where Islam is threatened as their principal enemies. Senior Sunni leaders like Shaker-al-Abssi of the Al-Qaeda tell the author in 2006 itself that only an islamic Caliphate can protect Muslim interests in the world. So, establishing a Caliphate will have to precede the liberation of Palestine and other nations. This shows that the idea of a Caliphate long predates the emergence of ISIS. Abssi and others believe that they have a right to hit the US in its home because the US hits hard in their homes. On the face of it, it looks as though these are mostly already known facts and that Mekhennet need not have taken such immense risks to end up saying things which are known already. But the book’s purpose is more than that. Most of us in the world form an opinion in this matter by reading only one side of the picture in this conflict, which is that of the affluent West. The author’s efforts help to humanize and present the view from the the other side as well - the Muslim side. On the Arab Springs, the author says that it only confirmed that the majority in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya or Syria want an Islamic way of life and rule rather than western-style democracy, contrary to what our media would like us to believe.

Souad Mekhennet makes some incisive arguments on the question of ‘where freedom of speech ends and hate speech begins’. She takes an explosive, contemporary example to discuss this question. There has been intense controversy regarding the offensive cartoons on the Prophet Mohammed in the Danish newspaper ‘Jyllands-Posten’ in 2005 which were later reprinted in the French satirical magazine, Charlie Hebdo. What we all remember are the violent protests in various countries in the middle-east with radical groups calling for the killing of the cartoonists and Islamic nations boycotting Danish products. We saw endless discussions on TV in the West, with politicians and journalists talking about freedom of speech and about Muslims being incapable of living in a democracy. Author Mekhennet says that the truth is a bit more nuanced than this. She goes to Denmark to research the story along with co-authors of an earlier book of hers. She learns that before the Prophet Mohammed cartoons were published, Jyllands-Posten had refused to print cartoons depicting Jesus in a derogatory manner because they believed that those drawings would hurt its readers’ feelings! Prior to all the violence, Muslim groups had also sued Charlie Hebdo for insulting Islam and inciting racial hatred, but their claims were dismissed. Mekhennet says that she had met earlier a number of Jewish survivors of the Holocaust in the US, They had told her that the Charlie Hebdo cartoons reminded them of how the Nazis insulted Jews and Judaism in the 1930s. She makes these arguments in a well-known German TV talk-show. In return, she receives some kudos from some people but there were many who abused her on Twitter and threatened her with death and calling her ‘enemy of the German race’. She had to hide her home address for fear of her family being harmed. The author’s point is that it has been an issue of ‘freedom of speech’ only when Islam was targeted.

The book reveals certain disturbing truths about the Moroccan immigrant Muslim families in Molenbeek, Belgium, which only a person of Moroccan origin like her can perceive. The alienation of Muslim families in Molenbeek has been well documented by many. Mekhennet says that most Muslim parents in the area do not understand their children nor care much about how they are doing in school. The kids do not know if they are Belgian, French or Moroccan and the parents do not care if their children integrated. These kids are born in Europe but they see their parents invest all their money in trying to build a reputation back home in Morocco. The kids and their families live on a pittance most of the year in Belgium only to see their parents lavishing gifts on their friends and relatives back in their native countries. They see their parents caring mainly about making money and building businesses and, especially about becoming somebody in the eyes of people back home. It is all about showing Moroccans back home how they have made it in Europe. It is no coincidence that large numbers of Western jihadists have come from troubled or broken homes, where poverty, joblessness and upheaval are the norm. Young Muslims and Muslim converts in Europe seem to have a fascination for the Caliphate as a place where Islam prevails and a sense of community exists. However, the author is quick to balance this statement with its counter that poverty, joblessness and alienation are not justification to choose ISIS as the solution.

I must say that I didn’t come away with much hope for the future of relations between the Islamic and non-Islamic world after reading the book. We read that in Nahr-al-Bared camp in Lebanon, a father, who is a militant, praises his teenage son for killing an infidel in a video game and eggs him on to continue doing so. In Zaqar, a mother shows a violent video of Shia atrocities on Sunnies in Iraq to her four small children. When Mekhennet questions her on this, she says that it is necessary conditioning for their future. In Amman, the author reports hostility in the eyes of onlookers just because her colleague, an American, walks with her, an Arab woman in ‘abaya’. All along, whether in Hamburg or Molenbeek or Lebanon or Egypt, there is the ever-present chasm between Muslim and non-Muslim, Westerner and Arab, Shia and Sunni. There are some balancing, hopeful accounts as well but they are only in the past. For example, Mekhennet meets with Armenian Christians in Iraq who tell her that they lived a secure and happy life under Saddam Hussein and that they could worship freely. They tell her that the Ba’ath party was secular and kept religion away from politics. The Armenian pastor even tells her that it is wrong to say that the Shia was deprived of rights completely in Saddam Hussein’s Iraq.

The epilogue in the book poignantly recounts the death of a fourteen-year-old boy, son of the author’s cousin, in a terror strike in Munich in 2016. The narrative brings graphically the pain that a family undergoes on the death of its loved one in a terror attack. The author says tellingly, “a mother's screams over the body of her murdered child sound the same, no matter if she is black, brown or white; Muslim, Jewish or Christian, Shia or Sunni. We are all buried in the same ground.”

A powerful and courageous book, straddling cultures and seeking truth.
...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Apr 10, 2017 Laura rated it really liked it

Shelves: netgalley

Souad Mekhennet is of Moroccan descent and German birth. As such, she has always walked a line between the Muslim and Western worlds. Fortunately for the rest of us, she is a journalist of the first order and seeks to educate these two worlds about one another's beliefs, experiences, and cultures by writing for The New York Times and The Washington Post, among others.

I am in awe of Mekhennet's bravery, tenacity, and her ability to make connections with some of the most shadowy figures of jihad. ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Apr 19, 2017 Les Gehman rated it it was amazing

Shelves: non-fiction, library-thing, arc, religion

In this thrilling memoir Souad Mekhennet recounts her upbringing and how it influenced her to always seek the truth. As a child of Sunni and Shia muslim parents, she saw first-hand that there is no need for the divisiveness that seems so prevalent in the muslim community today.

As a journalist, she used her muslim background to gain access to many of the people in the radical muslim community to try to find out why people became radicalized. In response to terror attacks, she actually went out a ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Jun 20, 2017 Rusmir rated it it was amazing

In a world trying to build walls, and coming from the country with the most famous wall of all, Souad is determined to build bridges. Her journey leads to an emotional and intellectual roller coaster. Even knowing that she will be alright in the end, I was at the edge of my seat through so many parts of this book - you just don't believe these things happen outside of movies! The incredible thriller action is paired with astute observations on what's making the Muslim word 'tick,' through first- ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Jun 30, 2017 Paige Kinnamon rated it it was amazing

Shelves: memoirs, world-conflict, giveaways

I won this book from a Goodreads giveaway and was going to add it to my ever increasing pile of books to get through. As I read very slowly, I don't normally get through a giveaway book before or around the time of its release but I Was Told to Come Alone was different. I picked it up almost immediately after receiving it and finished it about 5 days later. (Record time for me when my reading time is dictated by three fussy dogs who do whatever they please, but I digress.) This book was incredib ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Jun 26, 2017 Dae rated it it was amazing

Such an incredibly brave, intelligent woman. I am in awe of you, Souad. Everyone should read this book.

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Jun 23, 2017 Guy added it

What an eye opener this book is. It is superbly written and I recommend it highly to be read by all

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Jun 21, 2017 Tracee Marie rated it it was amazing

So good! This is one of my favorite memoirs. I was engaged the entire book.

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Jul 01, 2017 Lou Grimm rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This is a work filled with answers, and yet it asks even more questions. There is much to digest here, but we would all do well to try.

The world is not facing a clash of civilizations or cultures, but a clash between those who want to build bridges and those who would rather see the world in polarities, who are working hard to spread hatred and divide us.

I can’t help but draw comparisons between the current ISIS question and times past: the Romans, the Ottomans, the Spanish Inquisition, and the ...more

flag Like · see review

Jun 28, 2017 Tori Keller rated it it was amazing

Shelves: nonfiction, politics, foreign-affairs

"I Was Told to Come Alone: My Journey Behind the Lines of Jihad" is one of the most enlightening books recently written about the factors fueling Islamic jihad and a fascinating window into investigative journalism. Be prepared for an emotional and intoxicating read!

Regarding jihad in the Middle East and Europe, Souad Mekhennet is in an excellent position to understand what radicalizes people whether they come from the East or the West, are rich or poor, or are born into Muslim or secular famili "I Was Told to Come Alone: My Journey Behind the Lines of Jihad" is one of the most enlightening books recently written about the factors fueling Islamic jihad and a fascinating window into investigative journalism. Be prepared for an emotional and intoxicating read!

Regarding jihad in the Middle East and Europe, Souad Mekhennet is in an excellent position to understand what radicalizes people whether they come from the East or the West, are rich or poor, or are born into Muslim or secular families. Mekhennet is a Moroccan-Turkish German citizen who grew up facing the same discrimination as other Arab and Muslim immigrants. After 9/11, she sets out on a quest to answer an American widow's question: "Why do they hate us so much?" And why had no one told them? Wasn't that the job of journalists?

Mekhennet succeeds in her journey; she is an incredibly brave, tenacious, and compassionate journalist as she builds her sources behind jihadist lines to get both sides of the story and inform the public about the true nature of jihadism: "I felt that I needed to be in Iraq, to see with my own eyes what was happening there. I didn't want to be like those foreign affairs 'experts' who lived comfortably in Germany but went on TV day and night to talk about global hot spots they never dared to visit". She never settles for one source or weak evidence but takes considerable risk to discover the truth.

Contrary to popular belief, Mekhennet shows that radical jihad is not solely caused by the teachings of Islam. In her words, "Religion doesn't radicalize people; people radicalize religion". There are two main radicalizing factors that I gathered from her book:
1. Isolation from society due to broken families, racism, and poverty.
2. Lack of a conversation about what Islam does and does not permit.

It is not just religion that causes violence, but how it is interpreted through the prism of social grievances and used as a vehicle for retribution. Mekhennet does not blame one party for this phenomenon but places blame where it is due: on Western foreign policy blunders, racism & hypocrisy, radical jihadists themselves and anyone who breaks bridges for political ends. The confluence of these factors has led to the radical violence terrorizing Muslims and non-Muslims alike.

According to Mekhennet, it will take a generation to fix this problem. In one disturbing scene in Lebanon, after interviewing militant leader Shaker al-Abssi, she witnesses another militant praising his young son for playing jihad and killing pretend "kuffar". However, the first step to defeating this ideology is understanding it. To that effect, Mekhennet succeeds immensely and has turned her experiences into an invaluable piece of the solution. ...more

flag Like · see review

Jul 12, 2017 Adam Iscoff-Daigian rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Equal parts enlightening, thrilling and terrifying, this book should be required reading for literally everyone. I read a good portion of this book on a domestic flight across Indonesia sitting next to a devout Muslim couple where the man was wearing a Thobe and the woman wearing a Niqab, wondering if perhaps they had any idea of the subject matter I was delving into. Having had a partner of Muslim decent for multiple years, I thought that I would have been relatively educated on the conflicts b ...more

flag Like · see review

Jul 11, 2017 Jonathan rated it it was amazing

This is both a deeply troubling, and deeply touching, narrative. Part of what it exemplifies is the necessity of ethical journalism, while showing how journalism, media, and other facets thereof, and though who make the choice to ignore them, are often being opportunistic, twisting "media" because it serves their narrative.

Souad covers much of her personal life in the book, but also much of her work as a journalist, which, often puts her at risk, whether through informats, or through governments ...more

flag Like · see review

Jun 20, 2017 Julie A rated it it was amazing

Shelves: annual-re-read

Simply astounding. This should be mandatory reading for everyone. A true tour de force. What a book.

There are very few times when I finish a book and feel compelled to A) recommend it to everyone I know; and B) buy numerous copies to mail to my favorite readers. This is very much one of those books.

I learned so much by reading this. So much. I know that I'll learn more with each reread -- and this is definitely going into the "to be reread" section.

Mekhennet's stories are incredible, but her ...more

flag Like · see review

Jul 09, 2017 Jill rated it it was amazing

The author does a fine job illustrating the complexity of being a woman of Muslim faith working as a journalist during the conflict between ideologies. She clearly shows the bias faced as a minority growing up in Germany and Morocco. Exasperated by personnel experiences and news headlines, the journalist faces danger and death threats to show the faces of men, women and children caught in the middle between faith and politics. The stories bypass generalizations and governmental policies to show ...more

flag Like · see review

Jul 05, 2017 Beatrice rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Clear style, captivating

Although trying hard to satisfy all camps, the narrative is captivating and sheds some light on the issue - the militant Islamic movement in Middle East and Europe. I cried for Can at the end...

flag Like · see review

Jul 10, 2017 Sue Jacobs rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

A must read

This makes the entire Moslem Judeo Christian confrontation into personal stories. We are reading what is behind the headlies. It is very thought provoking and well written

flag Like · see review

Jun 24, 2017 Jim rated it it was amazing

Written by a daring journalist seeking answers as to why people radicalize and kill in the name of religion. She takes chances confronting those who do. It's a great insight into matters concerning everyone worldwide given the attacks of late in European countries.

flag Like · see review

Jun 29, 2017 Vivian rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I chose this book because I wanted to know a female Muslim's view of how people become so radicalized and violent in the name of Islam. What do other Muslims think about the violence and how do they stand up against it? The author is a brilliant, brave woman with an understanding heart.

flag Like · see review

Jun 29, 2017 Keeley rated it it was amazing

I received this book as part of a Goodreads Giveaway.

This book was wonderful and very insightful. I'm glad to have had the opportunity to read a book that I probably never would have picked up on my own.

flag Like · see review

Jun 26, 2017 Andrea rated it it was amazing

An incredibly compelling, impressive and painful read.

flag Like · see review

Jun 20, 2017 Amy rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2017

AMAZING.

flag Like · see review

Jul 01, 2017 Rick rated it it was amazing

Really eye opening. A German born Muslim becomes a journalist and investigates what makes the Muslim youth in Europe and the Middle East turn to extremism. Well worth the read.

flag Like · see review

May 16, 2017 Melanie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: good-reads

Crazy true story set in a world that is hard to understand.

flag Like · see review

Jul 10, 2017 Karli Fleming rated it it was amazing

Absolute must-read

flag Like · see review

Jul 08, 2017 Hpsmith rated it it was amazing

Fascinating. Impressive woman, informative book. Wow.

flag Like · see review

Jun 27, 2017 Keisuke Ando rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Must read

It's a page turner and compelling in message and should be required reading for anyone in a position of influence regarding policy

flag Like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Be the first to start one »

Recommend It | Stats | Recent Status Updates

Genres

Nonfiction

30 users

Autobiography > Memoir

15 users

History

7 users

Politics

5 users

See top shelves…

Books by Souad Mekhennet

Il dottor Morte: Storia della caccia al medico boia di Mauthausen

Die Kinder des Dschihad: Die neue Generation des islamistischen Terrors in Europa

The Eternal Nazi: From Mauthausen to Cairo, the Relentless Pursuit of SS Doctor Aribert Heim

More…

Share This Book

+ Share on your website

Trivia About I Was Told to Com...

No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

title link	preview: I Was Told to Come Alone: My Journey Behind the Lines of Jihad
avg rating	preview: I Was Told to Come Alone: My Journey Behind the Lines of Jihad Goodreads rating: 4.68 (135 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31848282-i-was-told-to-come-alone?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1497381278l/31848282.jpg[/img][/url] [url=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31848282-i-was-told-to-come-alone?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]I Was Told to Come Alone: My Journey Behind the Lines of Jihad by Souad Mekhennet[/url]

See a Problem?

Preview — I Was Told to Come Alone by Souad Mekhennet

I Was Told to Come Alone: My Journey Behind the Lines of Jihad

Win a Copy of This Book

Friend Reviews

Reader Q&A

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topic
Discuss This Book

Genres

Books by Souad Mekhennet

Share This Book

Share on your website

Trivia About I Was Told to Com...

See a Problem?

Preview — I Was Told to Come Alone by Souad Mekhennet

I Was Told to Come Alone: My Journey Behind the Lines of Jihad

Win a Copy of This Book

Friend Reviews

Reader Q&A

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topicDiscuss This Book

Genres

Books by Souad Mekhennet

Share This Book

Share on your website

Trivia About I Was Told to Com...

new topic
Discuss This Book