Jan Keating

A Prairie Girl Jan Keating

Sarah Powell, born and raised in Weyburn, Saskatchewan in 1908, falls in love with an Arab Muslim man when they meet while attending university in the United States in the 1920s. Against her parents' wishes, Sarah marries Dr. Mohammed Fadhel al-Jamali and moves to Baghdad. The couple have three sons. The eldest son becomes gravely ill and suffers brain damage from encephalitis and his mental development is arrested at age five. Sarah struggles to cope with finding ways to help her son, balance her own career as Head of English at the university of Baghdad with raising a family and supporting her husband in his ever growing career as Prime Minister of Iraq. A kind and progressive-thinking man who was ahead of his times, Dr. Jamali faces a military coup d'etat in 1958 that results in riots, murder and imprisonment. It is a true story of love, devotion, courage and "grit" of a Prairie Girl who endures great challenges in life while living in Baghdad.