About the Book

In 1976, Kay Chaudhri left a small town in Missouri and traveled halfway around the world to teach. She knew little of the Middle East when she arrived in the Persian Gulf nation of Bahrain.  Crowded with Voices recounts her experiences and impressions as she discussed culture, religion and social problems with students, their parents and her neighbors. Exploration of marriage customs, the changing role of women, and the often uneasy relationship between the sects of Islam provide understanding seldom available to those who are not able to experience the Arab world themselves. The impact of the Khomeini Revolution in nearby Iran and the Iran-Iraq War foreshadows recent problems.

More than thirty years after she arrived, she returned in 2006 and 2009 to explore changes and to discuss with former students, now in leadership positions, the challenges they face and their plans for the future.