A Mighty Heart: The Brave Life and Death of My Husband, Danny Pearl [Hardcover]

Mariane Pearl (Author), Sarah Crichton (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 30, 2003

In A Mighty Heart, an astonishingly courageous woman tells the terrifying and unforgettable story of her husband's life and death. For five weeks the world watched and worried about Danny Pearl, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, kidnapped in Karachi, Pakistan. And then came the news of his shocking and brutal murder. Danny's reasons for being in Karachi, the complete story of his abduction, and the intense effort to find him are told here for the first time.

Mariane and Danny Pearl were working in South Asia, as they had been elsewhere in the world, because they believed that good reporting is essential to our understanding of ethnic and religious conflict around the globe. They knew the risks inherent in the life they chose and took conscientious precautions.

The courage of Danny and Mariane is extraordinary, yet we are dependent on brave journalists everywhere to produce news coverage that educates us. There are many mighty hearts in the Pearl story, many brave people who helped Mariane in her search for her abducted husband. This account is riveting, illuminating, and heartbreaking. We learn, through the urgent tracing of Danny's last movements, about the terrorists' methods, ideologies, and ruthless violence. As soon as Pearl was discovered missing, a global effort began to locate him and identify his captors -- a race against the clock that spanned the dangerous fissures of culture and politics and language that separate Islamic terrorists and America.

Only one person can tell this story: Danny Pearl's wife, Mariane, for it was she who initiated and helped direct the urgent search for her husband and she who can paint a moving portrait of a marriage built on the ideals of truth, justice, and love. Intensely suspenseful despite the known outcome, uplifting at the last, A Mighty Heart is essential reading for our time.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Most people were unfamiliar with Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl before his kidnapping and murder in Pakistan. In A Mighty Heart, his widow Mariane introduces us to Danny as he was when he was alive while also providing a heart-breaking first person account of his disappearance and death. There are plenty of endearing details about Danny--his insistence on moving his favorite Barcalounger with him around the world, his love of playing mandolin, his private conversations with his unborn son--but the more remarkable portrait that emerges is one of extraordinary bravery. Danny placed himself in post-9/11 Pakistan, realizing full well that region's inherent dangers, because of his courageous dedication to getting the truth about attempted shoe bomber Richard Reid and other terrorist activity. When he is kidnapped and pictures are e-mailed to his wife, she notices that he's slyly showing the peace or victory sign with one hand and flipping the kidnappers off with the other. And while clues to his fate are still being pieced together, Mariane's story, until now, has not been widely told. Realizing Danny has been abducted, she must navigate underworld politics, the international spotlight, and her own shattered nerves in a race against time to save her husband. Along the way, with the broad array of people and agencies assisting the cause, clues are gathered about the kidnappers' identity and the intricate machinations of the international terrorist community. When his fate is finally learned, the spotlight does not abate even as she is devastated and awaiting the couple's first child. Mariane Pearl's candor is remarkable and her courage, along with that of her late husband, serve to make A Mighty Heart, despite Danny Pearl's death, an uplifting story. --John Moe

From Publishers Weekly

When Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl was kidnapped by terrorists in Pakistan in 2002, his very pregnant wife, Mariane, was left to try to manage the search effort. In this memoir of the month between Pearl's kidnapping and news of his death, she is unflinching, revealing every emotional detail with such honesty that to call the book heart-wrenching is to minimize its power. A journalist herself, Mariane is adept at detail and pacing, letting the events unfold as they happened, complete with their frustrating dead-ends and the tangle of Karachi's bureaucracy. She weaves in memories and thoughts about Danny, which give the book a keen poignancy. She describes how they first met at a party of her mother's, where he looked like "an elegant extra-terrestrial casting a delighted but somewhat perplexed glance at the earthly specimens." Later, after they were married and Mariane got pregnant, he would lean close to her growing belly and talk to the baby in a made-up language he was sure the baby would learn post-birth. After the kidnapping, as she searched his computer for clues, Mariane stumbled upon quirky lists he made, like "Things I Love About Mariane." Such insight into Pearl's personality make the tragedy of his death even sharper. As Mariane deals with his murder and faces the birth of their son alone, she acts with the same sincerity and grace that brought her through the ordeal of the kidnapping. It's not difficult to see why, on the list of things he loved about her, Pearl included: "Has incredible ability to see herself and others with clear perspective."
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Scribner; First Edition edition (September 30, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743244427
• ISBN-13: 978-0743244428
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (54 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,489,282 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Grounded in reality, yet an inspiring hope for the future October 9, 2003

By A Customer

Format:Hardcover

Mariane Pearl is to be commended for this wonderful book. She weaves together the story of why she and Mr. Pearl were in Karachi, the current political situation that was taking place, and every emotion she went through when Danny disappeared. This book will ground you in the reality that there IS senseless hatred in the world, but it also will inspire the reader to look towards the future, where hopefully all can live in peace.

The glimpses Mrs. Pearl gives into her life are astounding, particularly when she retells her difficult birth to she and Danny's child. She also expresses her unique balance of inner strength and her will to fight for Danny with her inner calm and ability to still trust in the world.

After the epilogue, she has copied some of the numerous letters she received after the news of Danny's death, and they will restore your faith in humanity. Written by both common individuals and world leaders, these instill within the heart that there is good within mankind. The letters from adherents of Islam are especially poignant, and their calls for a peaceful, united world will bring tears to your eyes. Five stars.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Courageous June 23, 2007

By Busy Mom VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

I picked this book (actually an older version of the hardback book) in a bargain book bin at a bookstore last year ~~ and since I am reading up on quite a bit about the Middle East and I knew that the movie was going to be out soon, I thought this would be a good time to read it.

When Daniel Pearl was kidnapped, I was pregnant and still working in the newsroom (nothing like the calibar of Wall Street Journal, mind you!). I remember reading avidly about the kidnapping and eventual murder of Pearl (though I refused to watch the video ... what a cruel thing to do to another human being!) but as time passes by, I got busy raising our twin boys. Reading Mariane Pearl's book on her experiences of waiting to see her husband again and being pregnant brought back memories of conversations I had with my husband. As a woman, I cannot imagine how harrowing it was for her during that time period nor can I imagine giving birth without my husband at my side. This book is a memoir to her husband's courageous stance and beliefs that truth is vital to human growth. It is also a memoir of Mariane's beliefs as well.

Mariane recounts her meeting with Daniel, her wedding (where she didn't stop smiling for the three-day party), her travels with Daniel and even their little routines that all happily married couples have. She recounts her fear and horror but her belief that Daniel will return home to her ~~ how she sees him defying his captors in little ways and how that uplifted her during that horrid time. She writes of the friends that she has made who searched for Daniel and tried to rescue him. She writes of her pregnancy and dreams for their unborn son. It is a beautiful love story that continues in defiance of the terrorists. In this case, the terrorists may have killed Daniel but not his spirit nor his wife's spirit nor his son's. Nor did they kill off the majority of the world's spirits ~~ the humanness of all of us that strives to make this world a beautiful place to live in for ourselves and for future generations.

I am not sure I even want to watch the movie (though I did hear that Jolie did a great job portraying Mariane) because this book is a story in itself ~~ so raw and intimate and collected in so many different places. It is a story of humankind. It is a story of love that will never be severed in spite of the ugliness of worst of humankind. If you are looking for something to read that will rekindle hope in people ~~ this book would do it. Mariane refuses to be bitter though it is obvious that she will always miss Daniel. This is not a pleasure reading either, mind you ~~ but I think it should be read ~~ simply to remind ourselves that love will continue in spite of it all.

6-23-07

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Suspenseful, though we all know the ending... December 11, 2003

By M. Bouchard

Format:Audio Cassette

This book was a little slow to start, but about halfway through I couldn't put it down. I was hooked. The author lets us know many details of her life with her husband, truly a great man -- what a loss to the world is his death. She exhibits great courage, persistence, hope, and appreciation for those who assisted her through this ordeal. I was crying at several points in this book, even at the end, where she includes many of the letters of support she received from people all over the world. The other bus passengers must have wondered what was going on with me as I sat there reading with tears streaming down my face!