Shackled

Title: Shackled
Author: Mariam Ibraheem
Major Themes: Sudan, Ethiopia, Refugees, Islam, Muslims, Persecution
Synopsis: Arrested and sentenced to death because she would not deny Christianity, Mariam endured imprisonment and childbirth in shackles.

I was a bit hesitant about signing up for Shackled. I could tell by reading the synopsis that it would be a challenging read. I do not enjoy reading about people being abused, and people hurting each other. At the same time though, it sounded like it would be an encouraging story about showing how God’s truth and love triumph over evil. I was right on both counts.

Mariam was born in a refugee camp in Sudan. Her mother was an Ethiopian Christian refugee, and her father was a Sudanese Muslim. Because her father was Muslim, and they lived in a Muslim country, she was automatically Muslim. She saw her mother’s faith and love, however, and knew that that was what she wanted. All her life Mariam struggled to live as a Christian in a Muslim culture.

The struggle between Christ and Islam came to a head in Mariam’s life in a year or two after she married a South Sudanese Christian man. She was arrested and taken to prison along with her baby, where she was soon put in chains. Though she was sentenced to death, she was allowed to live until her unborn baby was two years old. That meant that she gave birth in the prison still shackled in chains.

What a story. There are two things that really stood out to me in this book. One, of course, was the physical abuse. Being circumcised as a young girl, the horrible things her father did to her mother before leaving the family when Mariam was only six, the way she was treated in prison, and the abuse she suffered while giving birth. On the other side was the contrast she felt between Islam and Christianity. Though Muslims claimed to have a religion of mercy, she only felt love while with Christians. That love was so real to her that she never considered denying Jesus. I was also touched by her experiences with Jesus while in prison. This is an absolutely amazing story of a courageous woman, who stood up against all odds to maintain her faith in Jesus and protect her children. If you’ve ever been even a little bit curious about the difference between Christianity and Islam, read Shackled. Mariam lived with that contrast.

There is so much more I could say about this book. It has left quite an impression on me. All I can say, though, is read it for yourself. Don’t miss this one. Your faith will be challenged and strengthened. A quote that stood out to me, to wrap up this review:

“The friends of Sudanese suffer as much as their enemies because hate cannot be confined to one person or one people group. Once it is allowed to live, fester and grow, it lashes out at everyone and everything.”

I received a review copy of this book from CelebrateLit, and these are my honest thoughts about it.

WARNING: Mariam’s father’s abuse of his wife in chapter 6. A vivid description of female circumcision in chapter 8. Physical abuse in chapter 47. There is more; these are the ones that were hardest to read about.