The Dressmaker of Khair Khana: Five Sisters, One Remarkable Family, and the Woman Who Risked Everything to Keep Them Safe

For someone whose knowledge of the Taliban in Afghanistan mostly came from the evening news and Newsweek, this is a personal account of extraordinary women quietly living within a system and taking care of themselves and their families through a collective effort and the determination of a strong and courageous woman. The story is not heavy with political or governmental details, rather it is from the perspective of a family and its neighbors looking after one another while living under Taliban rule. Zimmerman's reading was tempered and consistent; she let the story speak for itself.

The performance was better suited to a mystery or thriller. It got tiring after the first few chapters. The writing style was more like a long magazine article and really bogged down as the book progressed. Occasionally terms would be used that were glaring exceptions to dialog. e.g. women were warned not to goof-off? so out of place....

This book gives great insight into how woman lived in Afghanistan during the Taliban years. They are loving, wonderful, & amazing. I think the reader did a great job and I enjoyed this book a lot.

Read this book if you want to understand Afghanistan, its history, the people and the Taliban. I had no idea about any of this except that the Taliban are extremist. I had no idea how the Taliban came to be so fundamental until this book. This was explained in the first few chapters and sets the stage for this true story of Kamela Sediqi who became the dressmaker of Khair Khana.

When the Taliban first came to Kabul, Kamela had just finished at the University and had hoped to get a job teaching. Her hopes were quickly dashed when the Taliban decreed that women were to stay at home, obtain no jobs, not leave the house without being fully covered and having a male chaperone, and other rules which seemed to change daily. They also roamed the streets like common thugs looking for the slightest reason to beat women, even the elderly. Women went from a world of hope to one of despair.

This is the very powerful biography of a young woman who changed what she could by starting her own secret business in her home and in so doing provided an income and hope for her family and the families of many others.

The only thing that I would have changed were the voices of the various characters. The reader gave them no individuality. All voices, both men and women, sounded alike. It was sometimes difficult to tell the women apart because of this.

Kamila had just completed her teaching certification when the Taliban came to power in Kabul, and suddenly she was not allowed to work or even be on the street without a male escort. In this wonderful account, you will learn how this enterprising young woman was able to support her family by learning to sew and then becoming a dressmaker, going on to teach other young women in her neighborhood the skill so they could support their own families. The book is well written and exciting, and the narrator has a pleasant voice and does a fine job. You'll gain real insight into what living under Taliban rule is like for females, whose world crashes down around them and how they can transcend the restrictions through intelligence, perseverance, creativity, and necessity.

I enjoyed learning about the plight of women in Afghanistan under the Taliban. I never knew much about Afghanis before, and this book provided a human side to their struggle. The look into their culture was very enlightening, and given what the females had to endure and the risks they took, the courage of these women were amazing to me. It made me realize how valuable some of the everday things are that I take for granted - like being able to go out in public alone and in whatever I choose to wear, go wherever I want to, talk to whoever I want to, etc. I cannot imagine being plucked out of a university program just because the government decides that women do not deserve to be educated. I was also appalled to read about the women having to be treated at female-only hospitals; in addition to not having proper medication and equipment, the female doctors could not even consult with their male colleagues. I was also very surprised to hear how progressive and educated this country was before the Taliban - I never realized that before. Not only was the story a good one, but it was also educational for me.

courageous, bold and innovative

The part where they are on a bus without a male attendant. I was impressed with the way Camil talked her way out of her predicament.

With this book and others, the narrator brings mood, emotion and brings the characters to life.

I was impressed with the outcome - I fully expected something to go very wrong. I had a hard time trying to put myself in the situations the women were in. I was angry with the Taliban and hoped they would be taken over.

This is a very nice story. The ladies were inspiring and it was a good listen.
The narrator did a very good job also.

One of the best audio books I've listened to. I couldn't wait to get back in the car!

Different author. I kept thinking that I should have felt some kind of emotional connection to this story, but I never did. It's a shame. The actual story about Camila has so much potential with the right author. There were a lot of holes in the story--pieces that I was surprised the author had just left out.

Three Cups of Tea. Both good stories with bad authors. Three Cups of Tea ended up being full of falsehoods. This one has been accused of the same thing.

Titanic Fever

Have a book club discussion about the book.

Emotionally devoid. Shame on this journalist for not being able to produce a better book.