Roxana Saberi is an Iranian-American raised in North Dakota. A journalist, she moved to Iran in 2003 and reported on the country. She also did research for a book that she hoped would provide a balanced view of Iran for readers in the USA and beyond. After six years in the country, she was suddenly arrested and charged with espionage. This book is a fascinating account of her experience throughout the ordeal, from the arrest to the interrogation to the trial. She spent a total of 100 days in the infamous Evin Prison.

Two things struck me about the book. The first is the incredible naivete of the author. She was a young and beautiful woman (she was once Miss North Dakota) living in a Muslim country interviewing dozens of people, then sending that information to people in the United States. Now any investigator worth a damn could figure out that she wasn’t a spy … but she was obviously doing things that would put her on the radar for the Iranian secret police. There were all kinds of signs for this, from knowing that she was being filmed in public to mysterious visitors talking to her neighbors. Yet she was surprised when she was brought in for questioning, surprised when she was not given her rights, and surprised when her interrogators did not believe her.

Her innocence and naivete were quickly shattered in the first few days after her arrest. She admits that she was naive, but I kept wondering, “Hadn’t she ever read even the simplest of spy novels?” I mean really, just read one Robert Ludlum book and she could have figured out that her behavior was going to raise eyebrows among the secret police types.

The other thing that struck me about this story is how corrupt the Iranian system really is. It’s a regime built on lies, and stupid lies at that. Such a statement probably puts me on the list of folks that won’t get a visa to the country, but it’s so obviously true that it has to be said after reading this book. Iran’s judicial system is ridiculous, it’s political structure is corrupt, and it’s moral high ground (as an Islamic Republic) is completely undermined by their duplicity.

Please understand, I admire the people of Iran. It’s a fascinating country with a rich history. The Iranians that I have met are kind, open minded, and bright (the highest percentage of PhD’s of any minority group in the USA). I’m thankful for the contributions that Iranian people have made to our world. My criticism is aimed at this regime, not the people of Iran.

This book ends well, and I’m impressed with Saberi’s strength and determination. God bless her. But despite the positive end, anybody who reads this book will conclude that the Iranian regime will not last. It is built on deceit and fear, both wielded like a blunt instrument by dull witted fools. Like every other authoritarian government, it will fall into the dustbin of history as yet another example of oppression and stupidity. Good riddance, may that day come soon.