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Another Year In Oman: Between Iraq and a Hard Place...

by Matthew D. Heines

272 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #07-2686; ISBN 1-4251-5936-2; US$19.99, C$19.99, EUR13.66, £10.32

In the second of a three book series describing his life in the Middle East after the tragic events of September 11th, 2001, the author finds he is alone again in the remote regions of Arabia.

About the Book

In the second of a three book series describing his life in the Middle East after the tragic events of September 11th, 2001, the author finds he is alone again in the remote regions of Arabia. As the book begins, the love of his life, an Indian beauty and scholar has departed under dubious circumstances. Her departure leaves him questioning everything, including his own sanity. Through a number of sometimes humorous and other times, tragically pathetic schemes to maintain a sense of belonging (and sanity) in a world where he doesn't belong in the first place, the author finds himself in the middle of a romance with one of the last people on earth he should be involved with.

To make matters worse, the U.S. is gearing up for an invasion of Iraq to the north and everyone is looking at him (the only American in the region) with even greater suspicion. He also discovers that there are a number of Iraqis who cannot wait for the U.S. to invade and free them from the tyranny of Saddam Hussein. After the invasion takes place, and things begin to go terribly wrong in Iraq, the author finds himself alienated by just about everyone except for a beautiful young school teacher who dreams that someday he will be her husband.

Rather inadvertently, the author becomes immersed in the culture of the Sultanate of Oman. Through his experiences, the author is able to describe to the casual reader the roles of women, especially their values and limitations in Arab and Muslim society. He also finds that in a world of lies, deceit and hatred, there are still people, specifically the people of Oman, who are kind and caring and who have come to consider him a part of their family.

About the Author

Matthew Heines is from a small town in Washington State, in the U.S. He served four years as a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division before attending college. Matthew is a graduate of Washington State University. He did his post-graduate studies in Alaska, where he earned his Master's Degree in Secondary Education. Mr. Heines taught for two years in Sur, Oman and then worked for the Saudi Arabian National Guard in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia before returning to Oman. Mr. Heines is a published author and loves writing, camping, diving and exploring Oman in his sporty little Toyota Rav4 with his Indian wife.