Every war is not fought on the battlefield.
Rahima, the middle child in a family of five daughters is dressed up as a boy by her mother, for the want of a male child to support the family. Dressed as a "bacha posh", Rahima feels liberated, to (be able to) play on the streets, go to school or work to make some extra money. In a society that believes that a woman's role is in the house as wife, a mother and a dutiful housekeeper, Rahima's fate isn't any different. She and her sisters are married off to men twice their age as third or fourth wives. What follows is akin to swimming against the tide.
Shekiba too has a similar tale. She loses her mother and siblings to an epidemic that stikes her village and soon after her father too dies heart broken. Shekiba is forced to seek refuge with her grandmother and other relatives. Her struggles to reclaim her home only lands her in deeper trouble. She is then "given away" to work at the palace in Kabul as a guard.
There is a lot of pain and despair in this book, both these women are bogged down by draconian laws that rule the land. While reading this, I ought to have felt appalled but strangely am not, despite the westernization of our lifestyles, women of many nations and undoubtedly in mine too suffer a similar fate. These stories may not be " currently trending"on social media but it is changing. Among this angst there is always hope. Maybe Shekiba will give up but Rahima certainly has a chance.
A well written book that takes the reader deep into the heartland of a war torn nation. A poignant tale about the women fighting a battle against the odds.
