Search - Stolen Lives : Twenty Years in a Desert Jail

From a reviewer at Amazon.com:

"Stolen Lives" needs to be evaluated on two different levels - the moving tale of a family imprisoned under the worst conditions for 20 years and the way this amazing story has been memorialized by Malika Oufkir and Michele Fitoussi. The subject is engrossing and important, but the book itself is not well-written. This accounts for the disparity in ratings that the book has received.

It is fascinating to read about Malika'a unique and frequently heartbreaking life. The eldest daughter of a Morococcan general, she was taken from her family and adopted by the King. Western readers will find the tales of her life in the royal household surprising and enlightening. Not only was the lifestyle outrageously lavish, it was also consisted of customs and traditions that are completely different from our own. Malika was allowed to return to her own family as a young teenager. She only had a few years to get to know her father and enjoy life outside the confines of the palace. Her father before General Oufkir was implicated in a coup attempt against the King and was assassinated. The rest of the family - Malika, her mother, her oldest brother, three young sisters and three year old baby brother were summarily imprisoned. For twenty years they lived in increasingly brutal and inhumane conditions, persecuted by the King for their father's crimes and forgotten by the world. Thanks to their uncommon courage and ingenuity, the family was able to survive and eventually escape. It's not easy to read about many of the horrors and indignities that were heaped upon the Oufkirs, but it's important that the world know about their story.

Unfortunately, the book is not worthy of this amazing story. It was written by Malika with the assistance of Michele Fitoussi. The first problem is that the book does not give sufficient background about either the history of Morrocco or General Oufkir's powerful role as one of the King's chief aides. Those unfamiliar with Moroccan history will frequently find themself at a loss for context. Second, given that this is Malika's first person account, it necessarily is a very one-sided version of history. Not that I doubt her version of events - I just would have preferred a more complete and well-researched book that included not only Malika's story but also those of her siblings. Malika frequently portrays herself as the backbone of the family, the strongest member who kept them all from succumbing to madness. This very likely is true, but it would have a much greater impact coming from someone else. Finally, the writing style is very repetitive and immature. While Michele Fitoussi is very sympathetic to Malika's story and deserves much credit for persuading her to tell her story, I have no doubt that a more objective and skilled writer would have improved the quality of the book immensely. Hopefully a serious scholar will undertake a complete telling of the Oufkir's story. I, for one, will be anxious to read it.

I enjoyed reading this book. It tells the story of a girl growing up in Morocco. She is raised in luxury, only to find herself and her family imprisoned for two decades because of her father's political views. They find amazing ways to enhance their lives while living in different prisons and their escape is awesome.

I truly enjoyed this book from start to finish. The conditions the writer and her family lived in were absolutely frightening. I could put myself into her shoes as I was reading the book.. and felt like crying many times. A must read.

great book! it talks about the struggles a family goes through when her father is accused without a trial that he was plotting to kill King Hassan. Some parts brought me to tears on what they had to go through.... partially the amount of years they were in jail. amazing. a must read for everyone... especially those opposing the war in iraq.

Excellent reading about the horrors of a whole family's captivity due to political reasons, and the horrible things that they went through. God bless them.

I don't often read non-fiction memoirs. I am SO glad I tried this one. I can't believe I have no memory of this story in the media - I was young, but over the 20 years I was in college, thinking myself very informed. This book really sheds light on being female in this part of the world, and boy, am I glad I am an American! The daily life of royalty is unbelievable and their traditions and customs are fascinating. Then for this poor girl and her family to go from a postion of power, happiness and comfort to deplorable conditions almost overnight - you felt like you were right there beside her the whole way. And you can't stop thinking - they REALLY DO this to women and children for no other reason but spite?