Author: Malala Yousafzai, Christina Lamb
Genre: Biography
Review: Aoife Kerr
Branch: Leixlip Library
When the Taliban took control of 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 school bus home from school. 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 has become a global symbol of peaceful protest and the youngest ever Nobel Peace Prize laureate. 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.
This is one of those books that everyone should read. It is such an amazing book and makes me glad that I have an education, as there are people out there, both men and women, who aren’t as lucky. One of the most amazing things about this book is that it is part biography and part history of Swat Valley. This helps the reader to understand the area in which Malala and her family came from. I thought it made for an interesting read. I did think the first half of the book, though very interesting, was a bit slow moving. The second half, however, picks up quite a bit. Either way, this is a book that is definitely worth reading.
Feel free to request online from your local library here or make an appointment to visit your library here.
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