Loubna Mrie's candid and absorbing memoir, 'Defiance,' is a stark reminder of the corruptions of power, the uncertainties of revolution and the frequent viciousness of human nature.

Syria this week is heading into a fifth year of civil war. Millions of lives have been changed forever. One is a man who goes by Saeed al Batal. That's not his real name, but the one he uses so he can ...