Reading Triumph, a memoir about an American woman's experience in Saudi Arabian is quite.am enlightening experience. As an American, her recounting of Sharia Law in a Muslim country like Saudi Arabian reminds how much freedom we as American enjoy, especially with our ability to.be vocal about religious customs in our country.

I would not consider myself religious, but if we are going by definitions, the closest I would say I align with is being labeled Islamic, in that I follow God only. But to say I am a follower of the Qur'an and/or Sharia Law would be like saying I follow Catholic dogma as a Catholic. I find many faults in organized religion and can feel for author Elise Martin's plight as she fought for autonomy of her own behavior.

Without a memoir like Triumph, many outsiders like myself would not be able to really know what goes on in a country like Saudi Arabia. The closest recounting of a religious country I have read is Persepolis, which similarly describes a young woman's experience in Iran as their own country became radicalized.

Of course, we have to take an author like Martin at her word, but such is the trust that is required to understand another person's testimony. We believe because we are told, and there is quite a story being told in this memoir. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to get a glimpse into a religious country to understand just how burdensome that a country can get without the freedoms provided by a Constitution.

Reading of how Saudi Arabia has a religious police who enforce Sharia Law reminds me of the Gestapo in Nazi controlled countries during World War 2. It may not seem as severe, but the threat of arrest for failing to pray is indeed a terrifying one. I can only ask what purpose God has in allowing such practices to occur, and pray that these countries enjoy the same freedoms that we hold dear here in the United States of America.

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