25/12/2009

Today's Outlook is devoted to the unlikely friendship between Bee Rowlatt, a British mum living in London and May Witwit, an Iraqi academic living in war torn Baghdad.

They were brought together by an email and a love of literature. As the security situation in the Iraqi capital deteriorated and May's life was put in danger, she turned to Bee for help and their two worlds were brought closer than they could have ever imagined.

May and Bee's extraordinary journey has been turned into a book 'Talking About Jane Austen in Baghdad', which will be published by Penguin in February.