Based on the story of Islam Our Choice: Portraits of Modern American Muslim Women, edited by Debra L. Dirks and Stephanie Parlove, I learned that not all people are born as fortunate as we are. In this book there are six stories written by six different American Muslim women about how they encounter Islam. They each have their own stories about their background, career, and outlook towards Islam before becoming Muslim. Honestly, I enjoyed reading this book because it is written by those women who fully understand the limited freedom they feel. Furthermore, I have also observed different cultures in different societies and how they see these differences as a unity instead of a barrier to getting closer to each other. First, start with Carema's story. She tells people about how she was born into a religious family and that their families are the kind of people who always go to church on Sunday because they truly believe that this is what a Christian should do. She spent her teenage years doing charity work and serving the community because that's what she was told what a good Christian did. But deep down inside she never felt enough. He felt that his soul would never find peace despite having done charitable work all his life. She seems to be missing something in her life and that's when she started to discover Islam. At that time, the Muslim community is very small and has never seen anyone wearing a scarf and beard and begins to wonder why they look like that. She begins to learn more and more about Islam and soon decides to become Muslim. At first his family is very surprised by his decision, but then respects it. Her mother also told her to do what she thought... middle of paper ......doesn't mean that if I wear hijab and niqab I should just stay at home and not socialize with other people . I realize that during the era of Prophet Muhammad, he encouraged the woman to leave home and seek knowledge as the pursuit of knowledge is obligatory in Islam. Prophet Muhammad also appreciates those women who come forward and ask questions that make them feel confused as the only references they had were men and those women do not feel shy to know the truth. Simply put, I strongly encourage people to read this book as it is based on a true story of American Muslim women on how they encounter Islam. The fact that the Islamic lifestyle has changed their perspectives in the world is more than amazing. Those are selected women who have been chosen by Allah to learn more about Him. Their stories really inspire me to become a better Muslim in the future.