I have read half of Queen Noor’s autobiography twice. The same half twice. Famous, great leaders have led fascinating lives and I like to read their books, but I might skip the part that looks more like a flight schedule and is naming all the ambassadors in the universe.

She was given the name Noor when she married King Hussein of Jordan. Her birth name was Lisa Halaby. She is American by birth, and of Syrian, British, and Swedish descent. She met the king when she was 24. He was 42 and had been married three times and had 8 children.

It is an amazing love story. She describes how little prepared she was for a royal life. She says that she basically wore blue jeans and blazers. She describes the transition when she got married: “Life as I had known it was over.” But she found her own way in a new country with a new religion. They got four children and she became involved in both politics and different international organizations, and she still is after Hussein’s death in 1999.

Her “Leap of faith” as she calls her book make me think of another young girl entering in to a royal life. She also had a purpose. She also was brave. Esther in the book with the same name in the Bible became a queen and was by that saving her people.

That is also an amazing story and I would read the whole thing. One small glimpse here:

“Each young woman’s turn came to go in to King Ahasuerus after she had completed twelve months’ preparation, …..: six months with oil of myrrh, and six months with perfumes and preparations for beautifying women.”

It was time to get rid of the jeans.

King Hussein and Queen Noor