Margarita Wednesdays by Deborah Rodriguez

Afghanistan is no place for an American woman, even if she's married to an Afghan.  What made it worst was that he was already married and had children with another woman.  When her husband gets abusive and Kabul gets even more out of control, Deborah flees with one of her sons.  The other son is already in a safe location.  She leaves her whole life behind.  What's she to do now?

Gallery books sent me a copy of this book for review (thank you).  It has been published, so look for a copy at your local bookstore.

Ms. Rodriguez's first book was the Kabul Beauty School.  I have not read that one but the author is comfortable with words and they flow well in her writing.  This is a continuation of her life story and it reads like fiction, but it's not.

Her boys are old enough to be on their own, so she finds herself alone and unfocused for the first time in years.  She stays with a friend who says she can stay as long as she needs to.  As time goes along and she has no desire to do anything, she begins to realize she's not as OK as she thought she was.  It's suggested she has PTSD from the Afghanistan stay.  She realizes this is so and sets out to try to overcome it after a year in hiding.

She puts her belongings in her Mini Cooper, adds her pet cat, and then heads for a place she visited on vacation years before:  Mazatlan.  Never mind that she has no friends there, no plans for her future or that she can't speak Spanish.  She's going anyway!

As a woman controlled by other people for years, it's hard for her to be all on her own.  She has various responses to the ups and downs of life.  But she never gives up.

I don't read a lot of non-fiction because it can be quite boring but this was written in an entertaining way and held my interest.  I became fascinated with her and her life and was happy to see her overcome her problems and find a way to happiness.  She's a much looser person than I am and adapted to a different life well.  She has done well.