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Little Tin Heart: A Memoir is about my coming of age in an often clashing three-culture family: Arab culture from my father’s Basra, Iraq, where I, too, was born; American Southern culture in which my mother qualifies for Daughters of the Confederacy as well as Daughters of the American Revolution in her Neosho, Missouri; and American Northeast culture in my own Montclair, New Jersey, the suburb of New York, where I grew up and worked so hard to belong.

Why did my parents elope after knowing each other only three days, and why did their elopement make the national papers? Why did my mother keep me at arm’s length and my father become so “strict”? Was their parenting based on culture, gender, or craziness? When my mother started drinking, what secret was she trying to drown? As unsuccessful as I was in trying to save her, how did I discover the truth? How did my experiences affect my concept of God and search for meaning in life?

You are invited to attend the author’s 14-minute talk about writing her book by clicking on the following link: https://youtu.be/sOYBi_VsrHY