I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban

by Malala Yousafzai

Other authorsChristina Lamb (Primary Contributor)
Paperback, 2015

Status

Available

Call number

371.8220954910924

Publication

Back Bay Books (2015), Edition: Reprint, 368 pages

Description

A MEMOIR BY THE YOUNGEST RECIPIENT OF THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE. When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, one girl spoke out. Malala Yousafzai refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education. On Tuesday, October 9, 2012, when she was fifteen, she almost paid the ultimate price. She was shot in the head at point-blank range while riding the bus home from school, and few expected her to survive. Instead, Malala's miraculous recovery has taken her on an extraordinary journey from a remote valley in northern Pakistan to the halls of the United Nations in New York. At sixteen, she became a global symbol of peaceful protest and the youngest nominee ever for the Nobel Peace Prize. I AM MALALA is the remarkable tale of a family uprooted by global terrorism, of the fight for girls' education, of a father who, himself a school owner, championed and encouraged his daughter to write and attend school, and of brave parents who have a fierce love for their daughter in a society that prizes sons. I AM MALALA will make you believe in the power of one person's voice to inspire change in the world.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member MarthaJeanne
I really enjoyed reading this. I only wish I were able to write this well in my first language. Remember, this is written by a 16-year-old, and in a language that is, at best, her third language. Pashtan, Urdu, English, some Arabic...

Yes, she had help, but her voice predominates except in the
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section about what happened while she was in a coma. And that part, although interesting and necessary for continuity, isn't as riveting as the rest of it.

Yes, she does keep refering to the history and geography of her people. Living in Birmingham now, she is aware of how different western cities are from her valley, and she works hard to get her readers to understand her culture.

She is a very impressive young woman.
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LibraryThing member LRGross50
I Am Malala, by Malala Yousafzai and Christine Lamb
Reviewed by Lois Rubin Gross
It is seldom that I devote an entire blog to one book, but this is an important book that tells the story of a very important young woman. In its own way, it is a book that bears comparison to The Diary of a Young Girl,
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written seventy years ago by another teenager in harrowing circumstances. The two young women, living decades apart, share a similar commitment to making a positive difference in the world and a similar belief that, despite their oppressors, there is an underlying goodness in mankind. It is amazing to find this streak of optimism in both books because both young women saw the very worst that humanity produces aimed at them through an accident of religious identity or gender.
Malala’s book is ghost-written by British journalist, Christine Lamb, who treads a very delicate path between achieving a smooth delivery of information while maintaining Malala’s true voice. The story is skillfully treated. Malala’s unique story actually begins with her birth. In a country that prizes sons above daughter, Malala’s father, Ziuddian Yousafzai, proclaims that he is happy to have a daughter and will see her educated just as he would a son. Ziuddian, who is a teacher by profession, opens a school in Mingora, Pakistan, and from the age of two, Malala is part of the school, sitting on teacher’s laps and learning all that she is able.
Ziuddian cultivates in all three of his children, but especially in Malala, a spirit of academic competitiveness that sees her perennially coming out at the top of her classes and winning public speaking contests. It is interesting that from such an early age, Malala is encouraged to express herself in ways that her illiterate, but strong, mother could not imagine. Whenever there is an opportunity, Malala learns to speak passionately about subjects as diverse as honor and poetry. While Pashtun tradition says that girls cannot speak their own words but must speak words written by their fathers or brothers, Malala finds that she must tell her own tale to deliver her speeches with sincerity and meaning.
Through all the challenges of her life -- a war-torn country, displacement from her home, attacks on the school by the Taliban – Malala is prescient that someday she will come face to face with the enemies of progress. She even mentally prepares the speech she will deliver if she is ever confronted by a Taliban. She plans to tell her attacker that all she wants is for all children to be educated.
Unfortunately, in October, 2012, the Taliban comes onto the school bus that she is riding and asks, “who is Malala?” then shoots her in the face. The rest of the story was widely reported in the media, but Lamb and Malala go through it, step by terrifying step. Malala, who is deeply religios, might say that Allah was protecting her on so many levels. By coincidence, a British doctor, Fiona Robinson, who specializes in pediatric intensive care was in Pakistan when the attack happened. She and Pakistani military doctors treated Malala’s injuries when she was triaged. The importance of the patient struck the Dr. Robinson when she said, “My God, I am treating Pakistan’s Mother Theresa.”
Malala was air lifted on a Saudi hospital jet to Birmingham England, on her own. She awoke, days later, in a strange land without her family and with grievous injuries to her head and left side. Malala takes us through the process of recovery (as she says, she now knows a great deal about medical procedures). She also continues through her quick rise to worldwide fame as a spokesperson for the rights of all children, but especially young girls, to have an education.
In unguarded moments, when she is discussing fights with her best friend or sibling rivalry with her brothers, Malala sounds like any child and that is when the book truly resonates with memories of Anne Frank. But there is something so mature and focused about this young woman as she talks about her mission in life, to see education come to all children.
The thought that came to me, as I read the book, was that in our country so many children take the gift of education for granted. Schools that fail, schools that have high drop-out rates, schools that “teach to the test’ so that students do not learn to think as much as regurgitate, are a sad, sad statement when measured against Malala’s dedication and determination.
We can question if Malala’s father put her in an unnaturally dangerous situation by promoting his cause for education through his young daughter, but this is clearly now Malala’s cause as well. Read this book because , G-d or Allah willing, this child is a future leader of the world and one that all our children should strive to emulate.
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LibraryThing member bragan
Malala Yousafzai, the youngest person ever to win the Nobel Peace Prize, is a teenage girl from Pakistan. Her father, a progressive thinker in a conservative area, founded a number of schools and was a great advocate for the education of girls, something many in Pakistan view as unnecessary or
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unseemly, and which the Taliban claim is downright blasphemous. And so after Malala followed in her father's footsteps, becoming an outspoken advocate for women's rights and education for all, a member of the Taliban shot her. In the face. On her school bus. Fortunately, she recovered from her injury, and her experience has not silenced her, although she has not been able to return to her home country, much to her regret.

Reading this, I am deeply moved by Malala's idealism, her bravery, and her humility, and I am filled with great respect for both her and her father. I've also learned a great deal about Pakistan, its history, and its troubles -- things I probably should have known, but didn't. I also have a new perspective on the Taliban. The Taliban... is awful. I mean, I knew that, we all know that, but to have this kind of intimate account of what it is like to have to live, day by day, in the shadow of the Taliban really brings it home in a way that no amount of sitting on my comfortable American couch watching the news could possibly manage.

Definitely recommended for, well, anyone who cares about living in a world where 15-year-old girls can attend school without being shot in the face.
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LibraryThing member billsearth
This book is inspirational. Although I followed the story a year ago, on the news, this autobiography reveals a lot more detail, both about Malala and about the daily life in the Swat valey she lived in, and about her family.

I call this an autobiography because it covers her entire life, so far,
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and even the history of her family and her parent's families. It covers the history of her Swat village also, going back centuries.

Malala seems to have written this book with only very minor help of her co-editor, Christina Lamb, as her personality, fears, and wishes come through clearly.

It seems astonishing for her parents to back her in following her dreams due to the danger those wishes entail in her situation. But then her dad seems very brave to have so persistently pushed for better education and community needs in the face of danger to the family. It is easy to see that Malala's dad is her mentor.

In the last part of the book Malala restates her long term goals and one poignant wish. She wants to be remembered as the girl who fought for girls education rather than the girl shot by the Taliban. This, and many other statements throughout the book show that Malala is both on the moral high ground and much more mature than her age would indicate.

Within the book Malala tells of how she became a good speaker and learned to speak three languages. It is no surprise she could write well also.

With the approach of the Christmas season in the U.S, this is a good time to read a remarkable nonfiction of a person fighting for better the lives of others, especially kids, even in spite of the danger involved for her in doing so.
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LibraryThing member froxgirl
This is not a "ripped from the headlines to make fast bucks" read. Malala has a co-author who has reported from Pakistan and Afghanistan since 1987. The history, politics, and culture of Swat, Malala's home, is so vivid. Also her ethnic Pashtun background is explored at fascinating depths. There is
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so much riveting history here, a lot that I never knew. People in Swat are miserably caught between Taliban and army and between ancient and modernizing forces. Malala's parents, especially her father, should be co-nominees for the Nobel Peace Prize, which I hope she wins. Her love for them shines through, as well as her dislike of her older brother, which makes this recounting more human than Mother Teresa-like. Malala, above else, is a brave girl who saw herself as no different than her schoolmates, other than her strong interest in politics, which developed from her father happily bringing her to meetings and events where other girls stayed home.

I hope that she gets to return to her homeland and her classroom (maybe as a teacher) and that her country will be someday be worthy of their finest citizen.
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LibraryThing member Sullywriter
I wish every American kid who takes his or her educational opportunities for granted could be required to read this remarkable young woman's story.
LibraryThing member wearylibrarian
When I saw Malala on a segment of the evening news I knew I had to purchase this book. As a woman who loves learning and loved school, I cannot imagine a society where I would be denied an education. Despite the danger, Malala spoke up against the Taliban and for girl's education. One day she and
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her friend took a later bus home from school. When the bus was flagged down a Talaban member boarded the bus and asked the question, "Who is Malala?"

This book should be required reading by all schools. This inspirational story tells of the happiness of a young girl growing up in her beloved Swat, and the determination of a young woman who only wanted what so many take for granted-an education. Malala could be a young girl playing on the roof with her brothers and friends, a young woman speaking out against the Taliban, and a determined young lady who does not lose her determination after a gunshot wound to her head. This book will make everyone-man, woman, girl, boy want to stand up and shout I AM MALALA!
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LibraryThing member thewanderingjew
I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban, by Malala Yousafzai and Christina Lamb; It is read by Archie Panjabi.
I didn’t think that there would be that much of interest in a book about someone so young, written by someone so young, yet I was blown away by her
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ability to put her life and experiences into words. Malala, a devout Muslim who loves her religion, has written not only an autobiography of her life, but also a brief history of her country with special emphasis on the Pashtun people, their customs and their culture. Malala and her family are members of a Pashtun Tribe, as are most people who live in the Swat Valley she so loves. Although she was just a teen when an attempt on her life was made, an attempt which almost succeeded, her courage and bravery continued to shine in the years afterward. She endured pain, disabilities and surgeries but seemed always to have a positive attitude buoyed up by her own prayers and the prayers of others. The Taliban and their barbaric methods did not silence her; actually, their brutality only furthered her reputation of heroism. She rose to fight another day. Although she now lives in Birmingham, England, with all of life’s modern conveniences that are in stark contrast to her home in Pakistan, she still yearns to return to the Swat Valley with its warmth, basic life and beauty that she so adores. She yearns to return to her home, her room, her teachers, her friends, and her school, the school that was founded by her father. She still continues her struggle for women’s rights in the Islamic world. She is a fan of President Obama and John Kerry because of their public, personal stand on civil rights. She appears not to be a great fan of former President Bush or of other leaders who have negatively influenced her country to advance the cause of their own. In that light, in the present day, her opinion of President Obama may have changed, as well, but there is no mention of that in the book.
The attempt on her life was meant to silence her voice, a voice that spoke out for more freedom and civil rights for the women of Pakistan, largely the right to have an education and the limiting of the more severe Sharia Laws. The Taliban banned education for women. In school, most of Malala’s friends wanted to be doctors; it was not easy for a girl to be anything but a teacher or a doctor in her country. Malala wanted to be in politics. She wanted to be a spokesperson to enable change and additional freedoms for girls and women. The methods the Taliban used to accomplish all of their ancient goals and enforce Sharia Law, were barbaric and savage. The people in Swat Valley were frightened, but not Malala. She believed that one person had the power to make a difference, to change things, and if it was her duty to do this, than so be it; she would face the danger.
Malala was 14 when her nightmare began. In 2012, she was shot on her way to exams. A top student, she was hoping to, once again, place first. However, after being shot, she remembers little about what happened except for her dreams which were inaccurate. She knows that the bus suddenly stopped and someone approached wanting to know who Malala was. Although no one spoke, their eyes gave her away. She was the only child on the bus with a face that was not covered. A spray of bullets also injured two of her friends, but she received a bullet to the head which was a grave injury threatening her life. It is miraculous that she recovered. With the help of modern medicine and technology, she has been restored almost fully.
This book illustrates the corruption that exists in Pakistan and uncovered the fear that most of the residents lived with because of the Taliban threats. It reveals the worst attributes of the Taliban and other radical Islamists. It also exposes the worst traits of the Pashtun people, as well as shining a light on their better attributes. The guilt she places on outside countries and international intervention into the affairs of Pakistan permeate many threads of the narrative. A reasonably backward part of the world was thrust into the spotlight by America’s war and suffered the consequences of misplaced bombs, drone attacks and governments that changed with the wind. It seems that each successive government promised reforms which were short lived or which became corrupt when the leaders reneged on their promises and became like their predecessors, whom they had overthrown. The coalition forces often misjudged or misunderstood the traumatic effect of their involvement in Pakistani affairs. They supported dictators whom the people distrusted. It was their chaotic affect on the country which helped usher in Sharia laws and the viloence of the Taliban, the very same Taliban they were trying to defeat.
Malala reads the prologue of the book herself, and she reads it in a very clear and confident manner. She is obviously extremely intelligent and mature beyond her years. She believes in non violence and also that “one person, one book, one pen”, can influence society and bring positive change. However, she respects Islamic customs and enjoys the prayers. Her effort to bring about change takes courage which she has proven is a major part of her character. Although her father was a devout Muslim, he was well educated and he never stood in her way. They actually worked together when he allowed her to join his crusade, giving many speeches, because he, too, believed that women should be entitled to education. He did not require his womenfolk to shroud themselves with burkas, although they did wear head coverings. Both father and mother supported the effort to advance the cause of equal rights.
It is very easy to listen to, and connect to, her book and its message which is universal when it comes to civil rights. Archie Panjabi does an excellent job disseminating the message of the book. Her tone is melodious and her manner warm. She reads to inform rather than to condemn or offer excessive praise and the message comes through loud and clear. She has captured the voice of Malala perfectly.
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LibraryThing member cbl_tn
Malala Yousafzai, a Pashtun teenager from Pakistan's Swat valley, had an international following before she reached her teens. At age 11, Malala was chosen to write a blog for the BBC about life under the Taliban. Although the blog was written under a pseudonym, it eventually became known that
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Malala was the author. At age 12 she was nominated for the International Children's Peace Prize by Desmond Tutu. She met with national and international leaders as part of delegations from her region. As Malala's reputation grew, her family was aware that she might be targeted by the Taliban and like minded individuals. However, Malala believed that her father was the more likely target. She learned that she was wrong when the bus she was riding home from school was stopped and she was shot in the head. Malala survived to tell her story in this book. Since its publication she has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

Malala's father, the founder of the girls' school that Malala attended, undoubtedly contributed to this book. He must be the source for many of the personal details and the conversations quoted in the book. Malala couldn't have known these things unless her father had shared them with her. Journalist Christina Lamb is credited for her contributions to the book. It's hard to discern how far those contributions extend. In any case, the voice is that of an intelligent teenager.

Malala's story added depth to my perception of Pakistan and the world events that have played out in that part of the world over the last decade. It's one thing to read a news story about a Taliban stronghold in an area between Afghanistan and Pakistan that doesn't have a strong allegiance to either nation. Malala's description of the Swat Valley and her explanation of the social structure and mores gave me a new perspective on the events of the last ten years.

Malala seems destined for politics. She already has more international influence than many elected officials. I hope she has a long and successful career and that the first attempt on her life will also be the last.
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LibraryThing member readingover50
I read 50% of this book and had to stop. What happened to Malala is horrific. What the Taliban is doing is unfathomable. I just grew tired of the childlike point of view. Yes I know she was a child when this happened. Her naïveté just started to get to me after awile.

Malala longs for the Pakistan
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of her youth. Did it ever really exist. Children often have an idealized version of the past. She remembers the good times from her youth, but you can never get back what you had as a child.
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LibraryThing member TomasJefferson
I am Malala is an excellent book about a girl who stood up for what she thought was right and never gave up. Even before she was born, Malala's family had it tough and her father's life long dream of opening a school, was going through many problems. Malala's father never gave up and he succeeded
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at the end and he was able to open a school and he treated Malala like a boy and he gave her enough freedom so she could "fly free." Since Malala grew up, she was always in her father's school and as a result she was always the top of her class. Throughout the book, there is always an intense part where Malala must endure threats from people who do not like the idea of girls going to school and getting an education. Even though Malala recieved many threats, she still stood up for what she thought was right and you have to read the book if she succeeded! I Am Malala is an excellent book with suspense and humor, something that every good book should have.
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LibraryThing member PhilipJHunt
Hard one to rate. It's a 5 star reading experience because of what it is about. Here is a chance to shatter Western stereotypes about Muslims, Pakistan and international relations (read 'war'). I became very fond of the child, Malala, and her heroic father. The writing style is journalistic and
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unadorned, revealing the competence, and deep knowledge, of co-author Christina Lamb. Sometimes I felt Malala may have been chanelling Christina's voice, but generally we get the voice of the child becoming a young woman. The shooting and the near-death days that follow are vividly reproduced and harrowing the read. If you think you know Malala from seeing her speaking, this book will fill out the remaining essential 90%.
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LibraryThing member AuntieClio
The first half, or so, of I Am Malala is history of Swat Valley in Pakistan and politics. There's a lot to digest about the Taliban, Pakistani politics and politicians (including Benazhir Bhutto and Pervez Musharraf). There's also family history and Malala's father's dream of building a big school
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and educating everyone, especially girls.

My main quibble with the first part is that it's hard to know whose voice is speaking, Malala's or Christina Lamb's, the co-author. It's written in a stilted style that seems to be from someone whose first language isn't English. To be fair, Malala's first language was Pashtun, not English, but this part of the book doesn't really seem to be in her voice at all.

I'll be honest, as I read I kept wondering when it would get more interesting. There's so much background, I couldn't really get the feel for who Malala had been before her shooting. I didn't hear her voice. There were times when I wondered if I would recommend this book to anyone I know.

But the day of the shooting came and this book took off like a racehorse. Even though it's clear that many of things written in the last part of the book are what could only have been related to Malala after she began healing.

In this part, her voice rises. I began to feel Malala come through the pages telling her story of how her life changed after being shot and transferred to Birmingham, England. The last line of the book is, "I am Malala. My world has changed but I have not."

A warning, there are somewhat graphic descriptions of punishments meted out by the Taliban. There are pictures, but those aren't as grim. I remain truly shocked at the inhumanity of some against others who want something different, something better.

Even though I'm only giving I Am Malala 3.5 stars, I do recommend it for anyone wanting to know about this miraculous young woman and the world she lived in.
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LibraryThing member bibliophileofalls
Although the first half of this book was rather dry historical information about Pakistan's political past, the book as a whole was very inspiring. A very young girl, so devoted to education especially for girls, is so refreshing and truly makes one a supporter of her valiant efforts.
LibraryThing member reannon
I continue to be enthralled by Malala and her story. She show every day that courage is something that is not limited to soldiers nor to men - but can be inherited and/or nurtured, as her father and mother, in different ways, have displayed amazing courage of their own.

If I were writing science
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fiction, I would write of Malala as the first Prime Minister of a United Earth, head of a government where even the least of us is valued and nurtured towards having a fulfilling life.
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LibraryThing member dpappas
Malala is an inspiration to girls around the world. She was just an ordinary teenage girl who stood up to the Taliban to fight for her (and all the other girls) right to go to school. She was shot for speaking out but she survived. Now her message is being spread around the world.

Malala's story
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really made me think about all the opportunities I have that I take for granted. As a woman living in America I have so much freedom and so many opportunities. Malala wasn't as fortunate as me and it was absolutely eye-opening reading her book. Reading this allowed me to see what it was like for girls like Malala and to put myself in their shoes.

I would highly recommend that all woman and girls read this book. I would also suggest that this become required reading for high school students.
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LibraryThing member dav4is
What a trooper!
The book had a ghost writer, and I wondered how much was Malala and how much the ghost. Recalling her UN speech and the various interviews, I can guess that the book is 90% Malala. She is one sharp cookie, and will come into a Nobel one day soon, I'm sure! Mark my words.
HIGHEST
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RECOMMENDATION.
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LibraryThing member michellebarton
Malala does a wonderful job telling her story of growing up in the Swat Valley region of Pakistan, daughter of a very forward thinking and education advocating father. Her mother is quite traditional, yet supports both her husband and Malala in their efforts to speak against those who would take
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away the rights of children, especially girls, to an education. The beginning of the book covers her father's struggle against deprivation and adversity to start a school for children, then goes on to cover more of her own life story, especially her drive to do well in school and to speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves. I found the history and politics of Pakistan and her family's experiences to be interesting and amazing - it is enlightening to read about the rise of the Taliban and the struggles against them from a Pakistani/Pashtun point of view.
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LibraryThing member Michael_Godfrey
While it is impossible to discern the degree to which Christina Lamb shaped this book, the result is outstanding. Malala Yousafzai is a remarkable human being, and in the writing the combination of profound wisdom and cheeky adolescent angst is perfectly preserved. Malala is no tennis brat or
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spoiled and vacuous sporting superstar, Malala is a person who has reached deep into the meaning of justice and put her life at risk for it. In the face of fundamentalism, Malala has practised and, more, personified the true wisdom of her faith. I can really say that this book, and its subject-author, are nothing less than inspirational.
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LibraryThing member bakersfieldbarbara
I thought it was horrible that my father would not allow me to go to college after high school, saying "girl's education is wasted." I eventually got what I wanted, up through a Masters Degree, and resented my father's thinking. Little did I realize that I had it easy, as I wasn't forced to abstain
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from any studies or education, just the advanced college studies. Malala, in this wonderful book by Malala Yousafzai, was not allowed to study and had to always be looking over her shoulder as she pursued any learning. Her parents encouraged her and her father in particular was always standing up for girls to be educated.

Years ago, when I heard of the Taliban destroying Buddhas and other religious icons, I was appalled that no nation stepped in to stop what looked like an emerging terrorist group. As the years passed, it was so, and they had laid a strong foothold in Pakistan. Because Malala was outspoken and unafraid, she was picked out to be silenced. The Taliban, who had taken over control of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, decided to silence her with guns. On Tuesday, October 9, 2012, she paid the ultimate price for her right to education; she was shot in the head at point-blank range while riding home from
school. Eventually, for treatment to save her life, she was flown to England for surgeries and recovery. The entire family was uprooted and are now residing in England, but Malala hopes one day to return to her home country to help others to get their education. One person, one voice but heard around the world to a testimony of how boys are prized but girls are hidden, or even killed, for their beliefs. Change in the world is possible and I heartily recommend this book for those who think they can do nothing. This brave 15 ear old story will inspire you, or at least allow you to see another side of what others endure, that we in America take for granted.
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LibraryThing member BDartnall
"I am Malala is the remarkable tale of a family uprooted by global terrorism, of the fight for girls' education, of a father who, himself a school founder, championed and encouraged his daughter to write and attend school, and of brave [Pakistani] parents who have a fierce love for their daughter
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in a society that prizes sons" (front jacket) Part biography, part Pakistani history, this clearly written, compelling biography explains the world Malala and her family inhabit: the beautiful but war-torn Swat Valley in northern Pakistan in the 21st century tug of war between radical political and religious groups, her country's military, and a revolving door of national political leaders. Through it all, Malala's girlish voice rings true - and thus the repugnant details of life for women and even girls under the Taliban's rule becomes that much more heart rending. Her unwavering belief in her family, the benefits of education, and most of all in herself will be an inspiring story for many teen readers, in spite of its length (313 pages). It includes a helpful glossary, which brings up another plus: this book helps non-Islamic readers, especially those from the West- grasp the complexities of the near Eastern culture, the swirl of political, cultural, and religious loyalties that defines Pakistan even today. A compelling read, and a timely one for our current world situation!
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LibraryThing member sgrame
Malala Yousafzai, a young Pakastani girl was shot in the head on a school bus one day. She was targeted by the Taliban for speaking out for the right of girls to receive an education. This is her story, told with the help of Christina Lamb about the youngest person ever to be nominated for the
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Nobel Peace prize. This 327 page memoir stirs teens to realize that one young person can make a difference, even in the most difficult of circumstances.
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LibraryThing member Chris-86
Inspiring. One can only hope that Malala realises her dream of becoming the Prime Minister of Pakistan. The world will be a better place for it!
LibraryThing member LynnGW
This book is a must read.
This is the autobiography of Malala Yousafzai.
Malala became, at a young age, a vocal advocate of education for girls in both her native Pakistan and throughout the world. Because of this, she and her family became a target for The Taliban. She was shot on her way home
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from school (by bus) one day. Fortunately, she survived to tell her story.
Malala gives a brief history of Pakistan and the affect The Taliban has had on it.
Please read this book. If you think The Taliban represents all Muslim people, please think again.
To Malala: Keep up the good work-the good fight.
You are beautiful-inside an out.

Quote: "Let us pick up our books and our pens. They are our most powerful weapons. One child, one teacher, one book and one pen can change the world."
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LibraryThing member amandacb
Without a doubt, Malala and her family are heroes. The first chapters are absolutely chilling. Be warned that this book covers a lot of history in regards to Pakistan and how it became the way it is now (and why Malala was shot), so if you're not a huge history buff, that large chunk of the book
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might be off-putting to you.
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Language

Original language

English

Original publication date

2013-10-08

Physical description

368 p.; 8.25 inches

ISBN

0316322423 / 9780316322423

UPC

884340159730
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