Zarifa

A moving and inspiring memoir by Afghanistan's youngest female mayor and campaigner for human rights, as seen in Netflix's In Her Hands documentary. ' Zarifa will break your heart' Christina Lamb, author of Our Bodies, Their Battlefields and I Am Malala 'Incredible' Stylist 'In this earnest and fiery memoir, an activist and politician from Afghanistan recounts how her country's instability marked her life' New York Times Zarifa Ghafari was two years old when the Taliban banned girls from schools. She was seven when the American airstrikes began. She was twenty-four when she became the youngest and one of the first female mayors in Maidan Shahr, Afghanistan. An extremist mob barred her from her office and assassins tried to kill her six times. Through it all, Zarifa promoted peace and tried to lift up women, despite constant fear for herself and her family. Written with honesty, pain and, ultimately, hope, Zarifa is an astonishing memoir that offers an unparalleled perspective of the last two decades in Afghanistan from a citizen, daughter, woman and mayor. 'Zarifa's words, like her life, are an act of courage, weaving heartache with hope' Shubhangi Swarup, author of Latitudes of Longing 'This gripping book can be read at one go and surely is a must buy' Telegraph (India) 'Frank and impassioned, Ghafari's narrative spotlights the power of activism... a remarkable story of perseverance and resilience' Publishers Weekly

A moving and inspiring memoir by Afghanistan's youngest female mayor and campaigner for human rights, as seen in Netflix's In Her Hands documentary. ' Zarifa will break your heart' Christina Lamb, author of Our Bodies, Their Battlefields and I Am Malala 'Incredible' Stylist 'In this earnest and fiery memoir, an activist and politician from Afghanistan recounts how her country's instability marked her life' New York Times Zarifa Ghafari was two years old when the Taliban banned girls from schools. She was seven when the American airstrikes began. She was twenty-four when she became the youngest and one of the first female mayors in Maidan Shahr, Afghanistan. An extremist mob barred her from her office and assassins tried to kill her six times. Through it all, Zarifa promoted peace and tried to lift up women, despite constant fear for herself and her family. Written with honesty, pain and, ultimately, hope, Zarifa is an astonishing memoir that offers an unparalleled perspective of the last two decades in Afghanistan from a citizen, daughter, woman and mayor. 'Zarifa's words, like her life, are an act of courage, weaving heartache with hope' Shubhangi Swarup, author of Latitudes of Longing 'This gripping book can be read at one go and surely is a must buy' Telegraph (India) 'Frank and impassioned, Ghafari's narrative spotlights the power of activism... a remarkable story of perseverance and resilience' Publishers Weekly

' Zarifa will break your heart' Christina Lamb, author of Our Bodies, Their Battlefields and I Am Malala Zarifa Ghafari was two years old when the Taliban banned girls from schools, and she began her education in secret. She was seven when American airstrikes began. She was twenty-four when she became the youngest and one of the first female mayors of Maidan Wardak, Kabul. An extremist mob barred her from her office; her male staff walked out in protest; assassins tried to kill her six times. Through it all, Zarifa stood her ground. She ended corruption in the province, promoted peace, and tried to lift up women, despite constant fear for herself and her family. When the Taliban took Kabul in 2021, Ghafari had to flee. But even that couldn't stop her. Six months later, she returned, to continue her work empowering women. Zarifa is an astonishing memoir that offers an unparalleled perspective of the last two decades in Afghanistan from a citizen, daughter, woman and mayor. Written with honesty, pain, and ultimately, hope, Zarifa describes the work she did, the women she still tries to help as they live under Taliban rule, and her vision for how grassroots activism can change their lives and the lives of women everywhere.

' Zarifa will break your heart' Christina Lamb, author of Our Bodies, Their Battlefields and I Am Malala Zarifa Ghafari was two years old when the Taliban banned girls from schools, and she began her education in secret. She was seven when American airstrikes began. She was twenty-four when she became the youngest and one of the first female mayors of Maidan Wardak, Kabul. An extremist mob barred her from her office; her male staff walked out in protest; assassins tried to kill her six times. Through it all, Zarifa stood her ground. She ended corruption in the province, promoted peace, and tried to lift up women, despite constant fear for herself and her family. When the Taliban took Kabul in 2021, Ghafari had to flee. But even that couldn't stop her. Six months later, she returned, to continue her work empowering women. Zarifa is an astonishing memoir that offers an unparalleled perspective of the last two decades in Afghanistan from a citizen, daughter, woman and mayor. Written with honesty, pain, and ultimately, hope, Zarifa describes the work she did, the women she still tries to help as they live under Taliban rule, and her vision for how grassroots activism can change their lives and the lives of women everywhere.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ”En enestående stærk fortælling fra en enestående afghansk heltinde.” Jyllands-Posten Zarifa Ghafari er dissident, kvindesagsforkæmper og tidligere borgmester i en provinshovedstad nær Kabul. I denne bog fortæller hun om det afghanske folks kamp gennem fire årtier med undertrykkelse, fra Sovjet til Taleban. Zarifa Ghafari voksede op i Afghanistan i tiden efter 11. september 2001. Som pige oplevede hun sit hjemlands spinkle drøm om kvinderettigheder og demokrati blive holdt i live af vestlige soldater og milliarder af dollars. Hun kom i skole, og hun og elskede det. Men snart var Taleban og terroren tilbage. Efter flere traumatiserende oplevelser og med skader på krop og sjæl afsluttede Zarifa sin skolegang i Indien, inden hun som ung, veluddannet kvinde vendte tilbage til Afghanistan og blev udnævnt til borgmester i Maidan Shahr i provinsen Wardak vest for Kabul. I den rolle kæmpede hun indædt mod korruptionen i Afghanistan, indtil mordet på hendes far tvang hende til at rykke ind i forsvarsministeriet i Kabul af hensyn til familiens sikkerhed. Kort efter tog Taleban magten og tvang Zarifa på flugt, da kaos opslugte landet efter tilbagetrækningen af de sidste amerikanske tropper i sommeren 2021. I dag fortsætter Zarifa kampen mod den brutale undertrykkelse af afghanske kvinder fra Tyskland. ZARIFA er en inspirerende kvindes livshistorie, ligefremt og lidenskabeligt fortalt. Zarifa Ghafari giver et nuanceret portræt af sit smukke land og det rædselsvækkende og ødelæggende mørke, Taleban gennem årtier har spredt over Afghanistan.