The People Smuggler by Robin de Crespigny

At once a non-fiction thriller and a moral maze, this is one man's epic story of trying to find a safe place in the world.

When Ali Al Jenabi flees Saddam Hussein's torture chambers, he is forced to leave his family behind in Iraq. What follows is an incredible international odyssey through the shadow world of fake passports, crowded camps and illegal border crossings, living every day with excruciating uncertainty about what the next will bring.

Through betrayal, triumph, misfortune – even romance and heartbreak – Ali is sustained by his fierce love of freedom and family. Continually pushed to the limits of his endurance, eventually he must confront what he has been forced to become.

With enormous power and insight, The People Smuggler tells a story of daily heroism, bringing to life the forces that drive so many people to put their lives in unscrupulous hands. It is an utterly gripping portrait of a man cut loose from the protections of civilisation, attempting to retain his dignity and humanity while taking whatever path he can out of an impossible position.

Author: Ronbin de Crispingy

Robin de Crespigny is a Sydney film-maker, producer, director, writer and a former Directing Lecturer at the Australian Film, Television & Radio School. Robin lives in Sydney with her husband, composer Christopher Gordon. Aside from film-making she has also worked as an entrepreneur touring overseas performers, in photography in San Francisco, on fishing boats and canneries in Alaska, and as the owner/manager of Sydney wine bar and music joint, The Limerick Castle.

The People Smuggler is available from Penguin Books Australia. You can find more about the book and this story on the official website.

Posted on December 04, 2012