Book Review: Side by Side ~ The Review Stew

A product was given for review for my honest opinion. No other compensation was given.

About the book:

In the dusty, Islamic country of Sudan, Mia's life collides with that of another young woman.

A young Christian American mother, Mia finds more than one dark secret on the streets of Khartoum. She finds Halimah, a young, upper-class Arab student with a bright future in her family's business whose risky and secretive decision has put her life in danger. What happens when the path of young mother intersects with that of a spunky Sudanese student? God transforms them both . . . forever.

Part of New Hope® Publishers' contemporary missional fiction line, Side by Side opens the reader's eyes to the life of Muslims in Sudan as well as some of the struggles that Christians face when living under Islamic law. The reader will be inspired to pray for those who are persecuted for their faith as well as pra y for the salvation of those who persecute.

About the author:

Jana Kelley is a Texan who hardly ever lives in Texas. Raised in Southeast Asia, Jana developed a love for cross-cultural living early in life. Her love for writing came soon after. Jana returned to Texas to attend college. She and her husband married a month after she graduated and by the ir second anniversary, they were living in a remote African town. Together with her husband and three boys, Jana enjoys travel and overseas living. After thirteen years in Africa and the Middle East, Jana and her family moved to Southeast Asia where they currently live.

My Opinion

I really want to broaden my reading horizons because I usually just stick to historical fiction books (which I truly love!) and sometimes modern fiction. However, when I saw Side by Side, I knew it was one that would truly be interesting and outside of my usual "reading box".

And it truly was both of those things! This book was so interesting and I love learning about the Sudanese culture and customs. I really feel like I understand now why they have tried to escape their country and why they dress like they do and so much more.

This book helped me broaden not only me reading horizons but my cultural horizons and I feel like a better person after reading it. It was really well written, told a great and interesting story of two women from different cultures coming together because of Jesus and their faiths. Truly a moving story and one that will not leave you the same person as when you started it! Living your faith and standing up for what you believe will never look the same again to me!