“The Fox Hunt” — Book details Yemeni refugee’s struggle

Four strangers. Three faiths. One extraordinary escape to freedom. “The Fox Hunt,” by Mohammed Al Samawi

“The Fox Hunt” (William Morrow, April 10, 2018) is a first-person story of a young Muslim man from Yemen who, with the help of a group of largely Jewish activists on social media, engineered a harrowing escape from the Yemeni Civil War.

Mohammed Al Samawi was born on November 30, 1986, in the Old City of Sana’a, to a comfortably middle-class family; his parents were both doctors. He was raised in the Zaydism sect of Shi’a Islam and taught-by both his family and the ruling class of Yemen-that Jews were responsible for everything wrong with the world, from sex scenes in movies to the depreciation of Yemen’s currency.

THE FOX HUNT (William Morrow, April 10, 2018) is a first-person story of a young Muslim man from Yemen who, with the help of a group of largely Jewish activists on social media, engineered a harrowing escape from the Yemeni Civil War.

But at the age of 21, everything changed when Mohammed was secretly given a copy of the Bible, and suddenly, everything he believed about Jews was thrown into doubt. He started to reach out to Jews over Facebook, joined a peace-building organization, and began traveling to interfaith conferences outside of Yemen.

Then he began to receive death threats, and was forced to flee to the Southern port city of Aden. When it suddenly became the center of the civil war that broke out in spring 2015, Mohammed’s life was in grave danger. Hiding in the bathroom of his apartment in Aden, he could hear the RPGs and AK47s below, and sent out a desperate prayer to his social media network. Four young people with zero experience in international diplomacy or military exfiltration worked across six technology platforms and ten time zones to save Mohammed’s life during a harrowing 13-day ordeal. THE FOX HUNT is an unforgettable story of faith, compassion, and redemption.

THE FOX HUNT is in development at Fox 2000 Pictures, with Marc Platt Productions (La La Land, Bridge of Spies) producing, and Josh Singer (Oscar-winning screenwriter of Spotlight) adapting for the screen.

“Poignant and utterly captivating, The Fox Hunt is a remarkable book that illuminates the human tragedy of Yemen through the life of one its refugees.”

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—Rabbi David Saperstein, former U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom“At any moment in history, The Fox Hunt would be a tense, exciting, uplifting story of international intrigue and cross-cultural cooperation. But at this moment, Mohammed Al Samawi has written an urgent and timely book that reminds us of the common threads of the human experience.”

—Bruce Feiler, bestselling author of Walking the Bible and Abraham

“Driving social change in theArab world is a high stakes game, and Mohammed Al Samawi gambles with his life. A memoir wrapped in a thriller, The Fox Hunt is one of those rare stories that’s as gripping as it is important.”

—Bassem Youssef, author of Revolution for Dummies and “The Jon Stewart of the Arabic World”

“Nail-bitingly suspenseful . . . Al Samawi’s ultimate escape is inspiring, as is his determination to continue to work for international peace and understanding. Illuminating and essential reading.” —Booklist, Starred Review

“Compelling . . . . This personal account of a remarkable life is a reminder of how peace comes in small increments as the result of the work of committed individuals.”—Kirkus

The Fox Hunt, by Mohammed Al Samawi
On Sale April 10, 2018
William Morrow
ISBN: 9780062678195
$27.99

eBook: 9780062678218
$21.99
Digital Audio 9780062802972
$26.99

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RAY HANANIA — Columnist

Ray Hanania is an award winning political and humor columnist who analyzes American and Middle East politics, and life in general. He is an author of several books.

"I write about three topics, the Middle East, politics and life in general. I often take my life experiences and offer them in an entertaining way to readers, and I take on the toughest topics like the Israel-Palestine conflict and don't pull any punches about what I feel is fair. But, my priority is always about writing the good story."

Hanania covered Chicago Politics and Chicago City Hall from 1976 through 1992. Hanania began writing in 1975 when he published The Middle Eastern Voice newspaper in Chicago (1975-1977). He later published “The National Arab American Times” newspaper which was distributed through 12,500 Middle East food stores in 48 American States (2004-2007).

Hanania writes weekly columns on Middle East and American Arab issues for the Arab News in Saudi Arabia as the Special US Correspondent for the Arab News at www.ArabNews.com, the TheArabDailyNews.com, www.TheDailyHookah.com and at SuburbanChicagoland.com. He has also published weekly columns in the Jerusalem Post newspaper, YNetNews.com, Newsday Newspaper in New York, the Orlando Sentinel Newspapers, and the Arlington Heights Daily Herald.

Palestinian, American Arab and Christian, Hanania’s parents originate from Jerusalem and Bethlehem.

Hanania is the recipient of four (4) Chicago Headline Club “Peter Lisagor Awards” for Column writing. In November 2006, he was named “Best Ethnic American Columnist” by the New American Media. In 2009, Hanania received the prestigious Sigma Delta Chi Award for Writing from the Society of Professional Journalists. He is the recipient of the MT Mehdi Courage in Journalism Award. He was honored for his writing skills with two (2) Chicago Stick-o-Type awards from the Chicago Newspaper Guild. In 1990, Hanania was nominated by the Chicago Sun-Times editors for a Pulitzer Prize for his four-part series on the Palestinian Intifada.

His writings have also been honored by two national Awards from ADC for his writing, and from the National Arab American Journalists Association.

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