Behind The Burqua: Our Life In Afghanistan And How We Escaped

Description: This is a gripping story of two Afghan women and their fight for freedom. This is the compelling story of two sisters, who fled Afghanistan twenty years apart the older escaping the Communists and the younger the Taliban. Through their eyes, we witness their private torment and public struggle for a woman's right to education and equality in Afghanistan. A woman ahead of her time, Sulima plays an important role in the formation of the first women's rights and literary movements in Afghanistan during the Communist era, while Hala, the younger sister, runs a clandestine school for girls under the Taliban regime. We gain insight into the remarkable courage of these two women and their 'sisters' in Afghanistan whose colorful personalities, capabilities, and hopes for the future were for so long hidden behind the burqa. Review: '...A critical historical document, BEHIND THE BURQA ultimately reveals the unbreakable strength of Afghan women.' (Eve Ensler, Author, The Vagina Monologues, Founder and Artistic Director, V--Day) '...a fascinating story...' (Publishing News, 2 August 2002) '...The sisters' tales of domestic abuse and other now familiar yet hair--raising injustices may crystallize the turbulnt historical timeline...' (Publishers Weekly, September 30, 2002) Table of Contents: Acknowledgments. Introduction. Part One: Sulima. Part Two: Hala. Epilogue by Sulima and Hala. How You Can Help. Author Biography: BATYA SWIFT YASGUR is a freelance writer of both nonfiction and fiction. She won the 1995 Mystery Writers of America's Robert L. Fish Award for Best First Published Story and the Coalition of Alternatives in Jewish Education's David Dornstein Memorial Creative Writing Award for short fiction. She is the author of America: A Freedom Country (published by the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service), the project through which she met Hala, one of the sisters whose story is told in Behind the Burqa. She is also the coauthor of Women at Risk, a book about cervical cancer and the HPV virus.