My Pen Is the Wing of a Bird: New Fiction by Afghan Women

"My pen is the wing of a bird; it will tell you those thoughts we are not allowed to think, those dreams we are not allowed to dream."

Eighteen Afghan women living in, speaking about, & writing from the country itself tell stories that are powerful & illuminating, unique & universal - stories of family, work, childhood, friendship, war, gender identity, & cultural traditions. 
A woman's fortitude saves her village from disaster. A  teenager explores their identity in a moment of quiet.  A  tormented girl tries to find love through a horrific act. A headmaster makes his way to work, treading the fine line between life & death.

These & more original, vital, & unexpected stories hail from extraordinary voices rooted in Afghanistan's two main linguistic groups (Pashto and Dari), & were developed over two years through the writer development program Untold's Write Aghanistan Project. My Pen Is the Wing of a Bird comes at a pivotal moment in Afghanistan's history, when these voices must be heard.

The authors are Maryam Mahjoba, Freshta Ghani, Masouma Kawsari, Fatema Haidari, Sharifa Pasun, Elahe Hosseini, Batool Haidari, Atifa Mozaffari, Anahita Gharib Nawaz, Parand, Marie Bamyani, Maliha Naji, Fatima Saadat, Fatangis Elyassi, Fatema Khavari, Naeema Ghani, Zainab Aklhaqi, & Rana Zurmaty.

With an Introduction by Lyse Doucet, BBC chief international correspondant, & afterword by Lucy Hannah, Founder & Director of Untold

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