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Book

Sonita : my fight against tyranny and my escape to freedom

Call Number

  • 921 A414 TEEN (CEN, EAS, MBL, OSH, POW, WSQ)

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Edition

First edition.

Publication Information

New York, NY : Harper One, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2025]

Physical Description

viii, 269 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Summary

"The first time Sonita Alizada was put up for sale, she was ten years old. She thought she was just playing a game of dress-up, but Sonita quickly realized that, in her culture, a wedding is a kind of funeral for the bride. Though this first engagement fell through, it would not be the last. But Sonita wanted more from life. In this memoir of tumult and triumph, the Afghan rap artist and activist shares the story of how she fled Afghanistan to pursue her dreams and evolved into a woman who is changing the world. She shares incredible highs, like winning a songwriting contest that gave her the opportunity of a lifetime, and unimaginable lows, like when the cruel Taliban regained control of Afghanistan -- how some of her family escaped and how some were left behind. More than Sonita's story, this is a love letter to those who dream of breaking chains of oppression."--Book jacket.

"The first time Sonita was put up for sale, she was 10 years old and she thought that she was participating in a dress-up game. She quickly realized that, in her culture, a wedding is a kind of funeral for the bride. Sonita says, "It represents the loss of a future. The loss of a voice." After the marriage fell through, she was placed on sale again. She was expected to form a family, sleep with a man she never met, and then repeat the terrible cycle with her own children. But Sonita wanted more. In Sonita, the Afghan rap artist and activist shares the story of how she fled Afghanistan to pursue her dreams and evolved into a woman who is changing the world. She shares incredible highs, like winning the song writing contest that gave her the opportunity of a lifetime, and unimaginable lows, like when the cruel Taliban regained control of Afghanistan, and how some of her family escaped, and how some were left behind. Sonita also shares photos and access to exclusive music. Sonita teaches us to hold onto hope. You were chosen to be part of this world and your dreams have power, too. You can be a difference maker. This book is more than Sonita's story. It is a love letter for anyone who has ever dreamed of more and held onto hope that their story would be different than the ones that came before them."--Amazon

Notes

Includes a QR code for original music.

Contents

  • War and hope
  • Ranjita
  • Love and forced marriage
  • A new kind of monster
  • The Taliban at our home
  • Becoming a thief
  • "If you don't have money, I'll take your daughter"
  • Ms. Zahra and her daughters
  • A student at last
  • Jabbar
  • Afghanistan in the other life
  • Razeq's engagement--and mine
  • Return to Iran
  • School
  • Marrying my dreams
  • Finding my voice
  • Daughters for sale
  • The other side of the world
  • Sonita
  • The fall of Afghanistan
  • Together again.

Subjects