Restless in her career and her life in general, Jennifer Steil, a gregarious, liberal New Yorker, initially accepts a short-term opportunity to teach a journalism class to the staff of the Yemen Observer in Sana’a, the beautiful, old, and very conservative capital of Yemen. Seduced by the eager reporters and the enticing prospect of spreading democratic journalistic ideals there, she extends her stay to a year as the paper’s editor in chief.
 
But she is quickly confronted with the conservative realities of Yemen—and their surprising advantages. She discovers unexpected benefits in the concealment behind the clothing she wears. In teaching the basics of fair and balanced journalism to a staff that includes plagiarists and polemicists, she falls in love with her career again. In confronting the blatant mistreatment and strict governance of women by their male counterparts, she learns to appreciate the strength of Arab women in the workplace; and in forging surprisingly deep friendships with a people whose traditions and beliefs are in total opposition to her own, she learns a cultural appreciation she never could have predicted.

“Steil puts humanity and color into her description of a country most Americans know only as a desert haven for terrorists. Her affection for Yemen and its people will make readers want to see it for themselves. A lovely book that offers a large measure of cultural understanding in a region that is too easily misunderstood and caricatured.”
—Nina Burleigh, author of Unholy Business

“With intelligence, humor, and courage, Jennifer Steil's book helps us see beyond stereotypes of male and female, East and West, conservative and liberal to appreciate the beauty and wonder of deeply rooted cultures--and the authentic relationships that can transcend them all.”
—Susan Piver, author of How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life and The Wisdom of a Broken Heart

Jennifer Steil spent a year as editor of the Yemen Observer, a twice-weekly English-language newspaper published in Sana’a, Yemen. Before moving to Yemen in 2006, Steil was a senior editor at The Week, which she helped to launch in 2001. She has also worked as an editor at Playgirl magazine and at Folio. She lives in Sana’a, Yemen.