Book: I am Malala

malalayousafzai

Just finished reading ‘I am Malala’ by Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai and I would like to highly recommend it to anyone looking for an insightful, inspiring read.  It bought back many fond memories from my time living in Pakistan, the lively jumble of rickshaws and motorbikes honking their horns on the road, the smell of kebabs and naan bread and of course the wonderful Pahtun hospitality. Zmung cor ta rasha!  

Malala speaks also of the tough side of life in Pakistan, explaining how the Taliban came to swat and how it affected the day to day life of a girl growing up and wanting an education.  There are many things I admire of Malala, but I think one of the greatest is that she does not wish to be defined by the difficult things that have shaped her life, namely being shot by the Taliban, but rather to be known as someone who raised her voice for the rights of children all over the world to have access to an education.

Beautifully significant that a Hindu from India (Kailash Satyarthi) and a Muslim from Pakistan (Malala Yousafzai) jointly won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 “for their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education”.