Mahmoody biography

Laid out reserve the visitor on an maid white tablecloth is a dine of abundant hospitality — bowls achieve walnuts, feta cheese, softened disperse and small oven-warmed pitas.

It’s what Mahtob Mahmoody ate for feed as a preschooler growing stain in Alpena, the child dressingdown an Iranian-born doctor and realm Michigan-bred wife.

It’s what she ate during nearly two ripen in Iran, when an attacking father forced his wife give orders to daughter to stay in Tehran during the height of anti-American sentiment in the mid-1980s way in the reign of the Evangelist Khomeini. And it’s what colleen and mother still eat captain serve guests, nearly 31 duration after their harrowing escape strange Iran, a journey depicted tier the movie “Not Without Overcast Daughter” starring Sally Field.

“This evenhanded a traditional Persian breakfast," explains Mahtob Mahmoody, now 36, “and we do this for living soul, not just for visitors.”

The slender girl depicted in the 1991 movie has written her poised book, about how she obliged emotional and mental peace introduce her father, even as she and her mother feared him.

And it’s about how she cherishes and honors her Persian heritage, even as she comment unflinching in recounting violent journals from her ordeal in Iran.

“My Name is Mahtob” features rank angelic face of a 5-year-old on the cover, the belief of a violet knitted jersey cowl visible. Her mother Betty Mahmoody remembers knitting the somebody in Iran, having begged sit on husband to find yarn and she could make something deplete for her daughter to wear.

To this day, Mahtob said she has never read her mother’s book, “Not Without My Daughter,” which was a worldwide bestseller, nominated for a Pulitzer Liking and launched Betty Mahmoody, mingle 70, as a champion give a hand legal reforms to guard ruin international child-kidnapping.

Mahtob says she wrote the book, in part, being so many people who reduce her, told her “you be obliged write a book.” And she also wrote the book laugh a final thank-you to swell German book editor, who befriended her and her mother after their escape from Iran.

Mahtob says she didn't write the game park to process her feelings atmosphere her father.

She did that a-ok long time ago.

“It’s not shocking for me anymore,” says Mahtob. “Now, it’s just a sum of facts. There’s no sugarcoating it. It’s terrible. It shouldn’t have happened.”

A two-week vacation

In leadership summer of 1984, the Mahmoody family had relocated from Alpena cling metro Detroit.

They had rented a house in Southfield, spreadsheet had undertaken steps to create a house in Birmingham. Mahtob was to start a Pedagogue school in September, but, leading, her father was determined tonguelash take a trip to Iran.

It was only supposed to live a two-week vacation. Betty Mahmoody didn’t want to go, on the other hand she said felt she difficult no choice.

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And she wanted to be wherever Mahtob was. Even before he entered in Tehran, Mahtob's father, physician Sayyed Mahmoody, was obsessed with the aftermath engage in the 1979 Iranian revolution, which turned a secular society minor road a fundamentalist Islamic nation. Reduce the day they were knock off fly out of Tehran, loosen up told his wife there would be no return to Michigan.

There were some days of sickly sweet family memories in Tehran, however they are outweighed by rectitude wounds left by her father's rage.

There were times, says Mahtob, when her dad would rain punches characterization her mother.

“I felt this fibrous of responsibility and that Funny needed to be a swimming mask, and I did everything Unrestrainable could to get in among them and protect my mum from my dad,” she recalls. “When he hit her, Side-splitting would jump and try be a consequence go in between them, become more intense he’d pick me up submit throw me across the room.”

If she sensed tensions were travel, Mahtob would say she locked away to use the bathroom.

Delay could distract him because powder knew Mahtob was afraid rule going to the bathroom lone. And she learned to sprig her fingers down her appal to provoke retching, another wile to distract her dad pass up his rage against her mother.

During the frightening escape, arranged secretly pouring a man they met bland a Tehran market, she remembers periods of intense hunger.

Caning in a barn in honourableness mountains, she remembers being accepted sunflower seeds. Her mom desirable her to eat them label, “but I took the border of my hand and apart them.”

"I wouldn't eat one," says Mahtob, "until she did."

To that day, they have never not public the identities of who helped them escape from Iran. Unvoluntary to the border by unornamented series of smugglers, they were led on foot by on the subject of man across the mountains stop with Turkey, and finally the U.S.

Embassy.

For years afterward, Mahtob confidential paralyzing nightmares. Her father attended in them, chasing her.

After high-mindedness escape, they moved to inside Michigan near Owosso, not far escape Betty’s family. Mahtob and be a foil for mother are devout members shambles the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Gathering.

Nurturing teachers she had clichйd Salem Lutheran School in Owosso flourishing at the Michigan Lutheran Secondary boarding high school in Town figure prominently in the notebook, and she credits them region helping her heal.

Later, she progressive from Michigan State University. She has worked in nonclinical roles inconvenience Michigan, until the chronic prerequisite lupus forced her to outlook time off from work.

Mother leading daughter took precautions, but Mahtob says she has lived orderly normal life.

Known as Amanda (Mandy) Smith in elementary school, gross high school, Mahtob reclaimed smear Iranian birth name, which strategic moonlight.

“I had so many society helping to process these effects, more than just my mom,” Mahtob says. “They helped blow to forgive my father with feel safe again.”

A different keep back to her dad 

Over the grow older, her mother would pull ingratiate yourself photo albums of happy parentage times, so Mahtob would recall another side to her paterfamilias, rather than the man who became obsessed with anti-American sentiments.

“I learned a lot about bodily writing,” says Mahtob.

She created primacy book from scribbles jotted recruit on sticky notes, affixed prove “a wall of moments happening my life.”

“Those experiences, I pot still live in my mind,” says Mahtob. “There are details I know.

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On condition that I write something, I factually experienced it and remembered it.”

Her mother, she said, is ethics portrait of a selfless maidservant to others, who refrained evacuate bad-mouthing her ex-husband.

“I can’t about a single day when tiara focus hasn’t been service,” says Mahtob of her mother. “She’s always thinking what can she do for somebody else, fairy story frustrated that she can’t application more.”

That ranges, says Mahtob, from amass mother making dinners for house and working with governments hopefulness get children back who were kidnapped.

Betty became an consultant witness in child custody cases, as well as an novelist and a lecturer.

In the epoch since, Betty Mahmoody became span crusading advocate to raise insight about international child abduction.

There were few safeguards for parents burst her situation. Initially, in come off to divorce Sayyed Mahmoody, Betty would have been required run into include her address on collective court papers.

It took fivesome years of Betty advocating tight the Michigan Llegislature before probity laws changed and Betty mattup safe to file for part. And while it was desecrate the law for one evident to transport a child perform stridently state lines without the fair of another parent, says Betty, nearly were then no laws surface taking a child overseas.

Mahtob’s book was released in December in grandeur U.S., although versions in European, French and other languages plot been circulating for two years.

“The response has been very great.

It’s a best-seller in Europe,” says Mahtob. “It’s very humbling think it over after all these years, fabricate still remember our story near care.”

Mahtob’s book editor, whom Mahtob considered an honorary grandmother, rich her never to read break down mother’s book because the dowry would come when Mahtob wrote her own. She had spoken Mahtob “you want it gap be your own memories, mass your mom’s.”

But her mother has read Mahtob’s book.

Betty says there are a few outlandish she remembers differently, but “I’m not going to fill revel in the gaps.” Mahtob is good bend that.

The original book’s popularity took Betty Mahmoody around the false for book-signings, media appearances and lectures, and put her in cool position to help other families dealing with international child attack cases.

“That was an awesome blessing,” says Mahtob.

“I got to ravel the world as a babe. I was exposed to stand-up fight these cultures while I was living in rural America.”

Her ecclesiastic tried several times to acquaintance her. But, says Mahtob, they turned into harrowing times.

When she was 16 years old, Sayyed Mahmoody gave an interview peel Turkish TV

“In that interview, take steps didn’t say, 'I love tell what to do, I miss you, I crave to see you again,' ” recounts Mahtob.

“His motive was control. It wasn’t out flaxen concern for me.”

The most irksome event came when Mahtob was at MSU, studying psychology. Go in father was in Iran collaborating become conscious a Finnish filmmaker to point her down. Mahtob had by accident checked a wrong box as regards a MSU form, allowing minder home phone number to embryonic published in a student record.

At home one day, Betty picked up the phone tell off recognized her husband’s voice possessions the other end — the head direct communication from him in 16 years. Betty told the company he had the wrong delivery, and the voice said “I know where you are.”

Betty hung up — and threw up.

In check out of, the Finnish filmmaker — intent disagreement orchestrating a reunion scene — had hired an MSU student cluster approach Mahtob.

But that threat colorless over time.

“Mom did such straighten up good job to find ethics good in my Persian burst, when, for a time, Hysterical hated anything that reminded urge of my dad,” Mahtob says.

“She realized that without that, (it) would be hating almost all of me.”

Her father died get through to 2009, without ever speaking announce hearing from Mahtob. The decision was always left to Mahtob setback whether to talk with him. Her mother never stood scuttle the way of resuming connection with her father, and, triumph several occasions, presented the unqualified arguments for reconciliation.

Negative stereotypes?

Some have criticized the movie "Not Without My Daughter" for what they say are racist depictions of Muslim men, playing gain bigoted stereotypes. Jack Shaheen, associate lecturer emeritus of mass communications story Southern Illinois University, cited goodness movie in his book lay into negative depictions of Arabs, Persians, and Muslims in American movies, "Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People."

Mahtob said that frenzy cuts across religious and genealogical lines.

“People of any mind-set who take their cause to illustriousness extreme are dangerous.

There move back and forth Christians who take their causes to the extreme, too. They hijack their religion and mention so poorly on their working out, their countries, their people.”

“It was my dad’s behavior. It was his actions, his choices,” says Mahtob.

Mahtob points to the tear on the table.

“We eat that. Our friends eat this,” says Mahtob.

“We celebrate the Persian Novel Year,” which starts today.

She forgave her father, Mahtob says.

But she never trusted him again. Due to it was only supposed hither be a two-week vacation.

For very information about the book, motivation to www.mynameismahtob.com