For the Love of a Child

Mahmoody's bestselling Not Without My Daughter and a film version publicized her flight, with her daughter Mahbot, from her husband, who held both captive in Iran. By 1986, mother and child were safe back home in Michigan, where Mahmoody began to help other parents, less fortunate than she, recover their stolen children. The result is this book--whose importance is clear. The writing partnership with lawyer Dunchock led to their promoting legislation on behalf of families who have been forcibly separated. Recounted in harrowing detail, stories about fathers and mothers trying to locate young sons and daughters testify to the enormity of the problem, which cries out for better cooperation among nations. This is urgently needed, perhaps less for grieving parents than for their children. (Sept.)