Leap of Faith (Queen Noor)

Leap of Faith: Memoirs of an Unexpected Life
Queen Noor, 2003
Miramax Books
496 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781401359485


Summary
The dramatic story of an emancipated young woman who became the fourth wife of a powerful Arab monarch, Leap of Faith is the intriguing autobiography of Jordan’s American-born Queen Noor.

The former Lisa Halaby discusses her late husband, King Hussein I (1935–99), and his tireless quest for peace in the Middle East; her conversion to Islam and her love for the people of Jordan; her difficult adjustment to royal life and her evolving role as a humanitarian activist; and her political and personal views on Islam and the West.

This fascinating memoir provides a unique perspective on three eventful decades of world history and on relations between the United States and the Arab world. (From Barnes and Noble Editors.)

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Author Bio
• Name—Lisa Najeeb Halaby
• Birth—Auagust 23, 1951
• Where—Washington, D.C., USA
• Education—B.A. Princeton University
• Currently—lives in Jordan, Washington, D.C., and London

Born in 1951 to a distinguished Arab-American family, Lisa Najeeb Halaby became the fourth wife of King Hussein at age 27. With her husband being not only Jordan's monarch but the spiritual leader of all Muslims, Lisa was unsure what her role would be. (From the publisher.)

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Book Reviews
Leap of Faith will not dispel its author's impression that she has often been misunderstood. On one hand, this is a glossy and decorous account of the queen's unusual experiences, with a polite tendency to accentuate the positive. ("I urged everyone I worked with to speak freely and offer honest, constructive criticism.") On the other, it is a fiery account of her husband's frustrations in dealing with international diplomacy in general and the United States and Israel in particular.
Janet Maslin - The New York Times

Anyone who loved The King and I will readily warm to the love story of Queen Noor and the late King Hussein of Jordan. Born in America in 1951 as Lisa Halaby, Noor came from a wealthy, well-connected family and was part of Princeton's first co-ed class. Her father's aviation business produced a chance meeting with King Hussein in 1976, and a year or two later Noor realized the king was courting her. He was 41, she was 26. The rumor mills buzzed: was she the next Grace Kelly? Before long, the king renamed her Noor (light in Arabic), and she converted to Islam. They were married in the summer of 1978. From this point on, her story is mostly his, mainly covering his attempts to broker peace in the Middle East. There are meetings with Arafat, Saddam Hussein, American presidents and other leaders. Noor details Hussein's struggles to create Arab unity and his vision of peaceful coexistence with Israel. Her own activities developing village-based economic self-sufficiency projects and improving Jordan's medical, educational and cultural facilities take second place to her husband's struggles on the world stage. And while she occasionally acknowledges her domestic difficulties, Noor is careful not to allow personal problems to become any more than asides. Her pleasing memoir ends with the king's death after his struggle with cancer, although readers may suspect that this smart, courageous woman will remain a world presence for years to come.
Publishers Weekly

(Audio version.) We love stories about princesses. This particular royal tale is true and shows that being a contemporary princess (or queen) involves a tremendous amount of responsibility and not a little loneliness. Of Jordanian and Swedish descent, American-born and Princeton-educated Lisa Najeeb Halaby was 26 years old when she became the fourth wife of Jordan's King Hussein in 1978. Upon her conversion to Islam he chose Noor Al Hussein as her Arabic name, meaning "Light of Hussein." The Arab-Israeli conflict and Hussein's efforts at peacemaking are a large part of this work, part love story, part political commentary, told naturally from the Jordanian side. Hussein's stance estranged him at times from other Arabs (in particular Egyptians) as well as from Israelis, a point Noor emphasizes perhaps to make him more appealing to American readers. In addition to raising their four children (and his eight from previous marriages) and traveling with her husband, she chaired the board of the Noor Al Hussein Foundation, which promotes culture and development in Jordan, with an emphasis on women's issues. She now works with the International Campaign to Ban Landmines. Noor ably reads the introduction, but the rest of the book is narrated by Suzanne Toren, whose precise, cultured tone is exactly what we expect from a queen. —Nann Blaine Hilyard, Zion-Benton P.L., IL
Library Journal

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Discussion Questions
Use our LitLovers Book Club Resources; they can help with discussions for any book:

• How to Discuss a Book (helpful discussion tips)
• Generic Discussion Questions—Fiction and Nonfiction
• Read-Think-Talk (a guided reading chart)

Also consider these LitLovers talking points to help get a discussion started for Leap of Faith: 

1. How would you describe this book: as a storybook romance, a glossy celebrity memoir, or an informative account of Jordanian politics and culture? How does Queen Noor come across in her book?

2. Lisa Halaby was raised in the U.S. as a young woman of American/Jordanian descent. What changes did she undergo in becoming "Queen Noor"? How difficult would you have found that adjustment? Would you have accepted King Hussein's proposal (with or without Abba)?

3. How does Noor come to understand the world's views of Arabs? Do you agree with Queen Noor in her assessment? Why does she think it's difficult for the Arab world to receive fair and respectful treatment by the news and entertainment media?

4. What is Noor's perspective on the Arab-Israeli conflict? How does she view her husband's role in that conflict? Criticism has been leveled that the book and writer are anti-semitic. Is that a fair charge?

5. What are some of the efforts made by Noor to improve women's rights in Jordan—and how serious were her efforts? Do you think she helped to empower her countrywomen ... or not?

6. Discuss Noor's account of King Hussein's relationship with Iraq's Saddam Hussein, especially the king's efforts to work with Saddam during the 1991 Iraq war. What does she suggest are the long-term consequences of the king's inability to negotiate a settlement?

7. Although reserved in her comments, what are you able to glean about Noor's relationship with her husband..and with her eight step-children? Consider, also, the time during which the king was ill and dying.

8. In what way did Noor attempt to redefine the role of Jordan's queen? What part, if any, did she was she able to play in the country's governance? Where did her power or influence lie?

9. What have you taken away from Queen Noor's account of her life in Jordan? Has Leap of Faith enlightened you? Has it shed light on the history and relationship between the Muslim world and the U.S., particularly in light of 9/11? Has it altered your perception of the Middle-East, its cultural or political attitudes?

10. What does the book's title refer to? What "leap of faith" ... and whose?

(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)

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