Like Desert Flower, this simple human story is a powerful way to tell readers around the world of the plight of a people, and this book couldn't be more timely.
Latifa was born into an educated middle-class Afghan family in Kabul in 1980. She dreamed of one day becoming a journalist and was interested in fashion, movies and friends. Then in September 1996, Taliban soldiers seized power in Kabul. Her school was closed and from that moment she became a prisoner in her own home at just 16. Latifa was now forced to wear a chadri.
With painful honesty and clarity Latifa describes the way she watched her world falling apart, in the name of a fanatical interpretation of a faith that she could not comprehend. Her voice captures a lost innocence, but also echoes her determination to live in freedom and hope.
In May 2001, Latifa and her parents escaped Afghanistan and were brought to Europe in an operation organized by a French-based Afghan resistance group and Elle Magazine. She speaks Persian and is learning English and French. Latifa is not her real name.
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Author description
In May 2001, Latifa and her parents escaped Afghanistan and were brought to Europe in an operation organized by a French-based Afghan resistance group and Elle Magazine. Since then she has been writing My Forbidden Face. She speaks Persian and is learning English and French. Latifa is not her real name.
