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4.39 AVERAGE
4.39 AVERAGE
I would be lying if I said I didn’t shed a tear or two. Truly inspiring!
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
This is a beautiful book about the life of a young girl growing up in Afghanistan during the Russian occupation, civil war, and Taliban suppression. The writing passion was never dimmed in her life regardless of the harsh reality she lived in. It was a rough time and her resiliency, her activism to advocate for women’s rights were courageous! Such amazingly smart and talented woman for us to admire! The letters she wrote for her son are poignant and raw yet so beautiful. Highly recommended!
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
An eye opening memoir of one Afghan woman's childhood and early womanhood and her resilience and resistance to the expectations placed upon her.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide, Violence, Police brutality, Sexual harassment, War
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
challenging
emotional
fast-paced
This is an absolutely heartbreaking memoir chronicling Qaderi's childhood in Afghanistan, during first the Soviet-Afghan War and then the rise of the Taliban. She describes the atrocities experienced by her family and neighbours during this time, and also paints a fascinating and horrifying picture of the way extremism can infect an entire culture. Qaderi's strength and resilience shines through every chapter, but her desperation and grief is palpable too, making this an incredibly affecting and devastating read.
With regard to writing style and craft: the narration in the first few chapters is absolutely gorgeous and evocative - credit to both Qaderi and her initial translator, Vanisa Saffari - though I found the dialogue to be somewhat stilted and unnatural. The writing style in the later chapters also felt a little choppy; presumably a consequence of the fact that these were done by a different translator.
With regard to writing style and craft: the narration in the first few chapters is absolutely gorgeous and evocative - credit to both Qaderi and her initial translator, Vanisa Saffari - though I found the dialogue to be somewhat stilted and unnatural. The writing style in the later chapters also felt a little choppy; presumably a consequence of the fact that these were done by a different translator.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Violence
Moderate: Grief