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A review by mariahistryingtoread
I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai
5.0
The Diversify That Shelf Readathon was from August 10th to August 19th. I chose this to satisfy POC on the cover, a non western setting, and a different culture than me.
Malala is a young Pakistani woman who was born into a country at war with itself. Her father is a staunch believer of womens' rights especially to education as well as an outspoken political activist in general. Through, his unshakeable support of her, Malala follows in his footsteps to become a trailblazer in her own right.
I will not pretend to understand all of the intricacies of why Pakistan has had such political turmoil. It seems to largely be a result of religious fervor, self serving foreign interference and an inability to properly get anything done because of corrupt officials. This is obviously a broad strokes, outsiders' perspective so I encourage you to do your own research.
This book provides a lot of historical context to bolster Malala's story - something I very much appreciated. As someone who has very little knowledge of Pakistani society I felt that it was a great addition because I was able to better see the factors that contributed to Malala's circumstances. I actually would go so far as to say that it was necessary to ensure the reader gets the whole picture.
This is a mostly easy read. It's well paced, well documented, and well written overall. Malala's voice shines throughout. I listened to the audiobook which immersed me even more in the atmosphere. I say it's mostly an easy read because sometimes the subject matter becomes difficult to get through. It's never graphic in its discussion of some of the tragedies Malala and her people face, but it was often frustrating or lamentable nevertheless.
I don't think it was this life changing read, but it fulfilled all the major requirements of an autobiography and kept me entertained which is all I think you can really ask for when reading this genre.
Malala is a young Pakistani woman who was born into a country at war with itself. Her father is a staunch believer of womens' rights especially to education as well as an outspoken political activist in general. Through, his unshakeable support of her, Malala follows in his footsteps to become a trailblazer in her own right.
I will not pretend to understand all of the intricacies of why Pakistan has had such political turmoil. It seems to largely be a result of religious fervor, self serving foreign interference and an inability to properly get anything done because of corrupt officials. This is obviously a broad strokes, outsiders' perspective so I encourage you to do your own research.
This book provides a lot of historical context to bolster Malala's story - something I very much appreciated. As someone who has very little knowledge of Pakistani society I felt that it was a great addition because I was able to better see the factors that contributed to Malala's circumstances. I actually would go so far as to say that it was necessary to ensure the reader gets the whole picture.
This is a mostly easy read. It's well paced, well documented, and well written overall. Malala's voice shines throughout. I listened to the audiobook which immersed me even more in the atmosphere. I say it's mostly an easy read because sometimes the subject matter becomes difficult to get through. It's never graphic in its discussion of some of the tragedies Malala and her people face, but it was often frustrating or lamentable nevertheless.
I don't think it was this life changing read, but it fulfilled all the major requirements of an autobiography and kept me entertained which is all I think you can really ask for when reading this genre.