Eighteen-year-old Deya Raad lives in New York City, the 'city of opportunity.' But she has no cell phone, no computer, and no friends. She can only leave the house to go to school and the nearest store—Arab girls must behave according to tradition, even if they were born and raised in America. Their greatest adornment is modesty, their destiny is early marriage, service to their husbands, and raising children. Although Deya dreams of going to university, her strict grandparents insist on immediate marriage. The girl understands that she will have to repeat the fate of her mother, who was once married without asking and sent from Palestine to America. But one day, Deya receives a letter that will give her the chance to decide for herself what her future life will be. Itaf Ram was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, to a family of Palestinian immigrants, in which she is the eldest of nine children. She earned a Master of Arts degree in American and British Literature from North Carolina State University, where she teaches English language and literature. She is raising two children. 'A Woman Is Not a Man' is her first book.