Bridegroom from Baghdad

A personal memoir of one woman's journey that took her from the windswept Canadian prairies to cities and villages across Europe and North Africa.

Shar Mitchell's search for meaning and purpose in her life ultimately lead her to embrace the Bahá'í Faith. Her first marriage ended in divorce. Later she met and married her "bridegroom from Baghdad," Redwan Moqbel. Born to a poor Bahá'í family in a dusty border town between Iran and Iraq, Redwan was an internationally renowned medical scientist by the time he and Shar married.

That relationship led to Shar's challenging quest to learn more about her new relatives back in Iraq, a country that persecuted its Bahá'i minority, sentenced Redwan to life in prison in absentia and jailed his mother for many years. Shar's dream of meeting Redwan's courageous family would finally come true because of a catastrophic health crisis—Redwan's difficult battle with cancer. The Bridegroom from Baghdad is a memoir of life's unexpected twists and turns; youthful exploration of new places and ideas; finding faith and love; and meeting challenges with courage, acceptance, and resilience.