I AM MALALA is the remarkable story of a family uprooted by global terrorism, of the fight for girls education and of the deep love of Malala’s parents for their daughter in a society that wants only sons. It makes us believe in the power of a person’s voice to inspire and bring the needed change in the world.
When the Taliban took control over the Swat valley, one girl spoke out with immense courage. Malala Yousafzai refused to be silent and fought for her right to education. She was born in a poor family with two brothers younger than her. On Tuesday, 9th of October 2012, she paid the ultimate price. She was shot point blank while returning home from school in a bus. She was not expected to survive. Instead, her miraculous recovery took her from a remote village Swat in Northern Pakistan to the United States of America. At sixteen years, she has become a global symbol for peaceful protest and she won the Youngest Nobel Prize for Peace.
Her goal is to raise her voice on behalf of millions of girls who are denied the right of education and realize their potential. She has constituted the Malala Fund which believes that every child has the power to change the world. All that they need is a chance.
The fund will help local communities to develop innovative solutions to build traditional approaches when the girl children will find an audience to their voice and thereby create a better tomorrow. One child, One teacher, One book, One Pen is the motto of the Malala Fund that strives to change the world through education.
The first half of the book Malala describes Pakistan’s history including the history of her ancestors and the northern region of Pakistan, Swat where she lives. Malala also shares stories of her family, giving the reader a glimpse into the culture of Pakistan from a young woman’s perspective. Many of the stories involve Malala’s father Ziauddin Yousafzai. She describes his involvement in local politics, in the community and his vocal support of education for boys and girls.
There’s no doubt in Malala’s passion and courage to stand-up for women’s rights stems from her father’s actions and character. Ziauddin Yousafzai defied Taliban orders by running a private school that encouraged girls to attend. Malala describes the challenges and frustrations her father faced when starting the school. The motto over the school’s door read “We are committed to build for your the call of the new era”. Her father believed the school’s students could fight the enemy with pens, not swords.
This book ‘I am Malala’ should be used in classes around the world. It is extremely powerful, and Malala is someone we can all learn from. When reading the book, we easily forget that Malala was just a child when most of these events happened. Most of us will not show one hundredth of her courage in our lifetime. She used her grief and her tragic past to build a cause and help solve the problems she sees as the most pressing. The fight is still going on and needs our attention, and Malala’s book is a testament to the power each and every one of us has to make the world a more equal place.
Eduindex News 