Tears Behind the Veil

Book excerpt: Sania Craven is a normal thirteen-year-old girl. She does well at school, plays football with her classmates and lives in a happy home with two loving parents. She has no cares, no worries. However, this all changes the day her father dies. To cope with the death of her English husband, Sania's mother takes her on a journey back to India, the land of her birth, to reunite with her family. What Sania doesn't know is that this is no holiday, but possibly her new home for the rest of her life. Sania becomes embroiled in a world of culture clashes, prejudice and forced marriages; a world where sexual abuse and the subordination of women is commonplace and unquestioned. When her mother remarries and Sania too is forced into a marriage, she must learn to live her life in India until she can find a way to get home. But how? Who will hear her cries and wipe her tears? Who will see the tears behind the veil, who will hear her tears of silence? Who can she turn to for help and support? How many sacrifices can she endure for the promise of the freedom that she so desperately desires?