Best of Two Lives

The Best of Two Lives is a love story as well as family history. It is shaped as a journey, beginning with the cultural foundations of Jordan and the United States. Weaving threads of family stories, Doris introduces us to compelling characters, and describes ways of life that might be forgotten if not for projects such as this. Ibrahim's early years are detailed as he lived in a mixed Muslim-Christian community in Jordan, and Doris tells of growing up as a small-town conservative Christian in Oregon. One of the fundamental messages is that despite superficial differences, at the root, Arab lives and concerns in the Middle East are relatable, just as those of Americans in the United States. Doris never shrinks from showing negative attributes that she couldn't be blamed for wanting to hide, and that differentiates her book from a purely family history. There's something here to help us see our own families more clearly and honestly, and to understand them with compassion.