When the Taliban was ousted as the ruling party of Afghanistan, the iconic images of newfound freedom were those of men shaving their beards and women removing their veils. In Women of Afghanistan, French journalist Isabelle Delloye goes beyond the images -- and behind the veils -- and collects the crucial and fascinating stories of Afghani women from the last quarter-century.
Delloye began doing interviews while working as a teacher in Kabul shortly before the Soviet invasion of 198. Upon returning to France, she felt compelled to offer a forum in which the voices of her interviewees could be heard. She compiled their words, along with her own memories and observations, into this book, and it has become regarded as a classic of French journalism. Since its first publication, Women of Afghanistan has been updated twice, and this edition features a large section written at the height of the Talibans power as well as two short, moving pieces written just after September 11, 21.
Women of Afghanistan is an important work of social history, allowing previously silenced subjects to speak without judgment. More than that, it presents a personal glimpse into the highs and lows of daily life in a nation where threats of war, starvation and natural disaster coexist with deep family ties and love for the land.
Women of Afghanistan is a slowly woven tapestry, in which the subjects find their own natural place in -history . . . all of them are terribly alive on paper and between the lines -- women and men, children and the elderly. -- LeNouvel Observateur
Isabelle Delloye lived and taught in Kabul from 1975 through 1978. Since then, she has lived in her native France, and is well-known for her multiple talents as a videographer, muralist, ceramics artist, editor, and publisher.
