My Pen Is the Wing of a Bird

New Fiction by Afghan Women

By: Afghan Women

Narrated by: Sitara Attaie

A landmark collection: the first anthology of short fiction by Afghan women that are "powerful, profound, and deeply moving" (Elif Shafak, author of The Island of Missing Trees, a Reese's Book Club pick)

"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, and writing from the country itself tell stories that are powerful and illuminating, unique and universal - stories of family, work, childhood, friendship, war, gender identity, and 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 and death.

These and more original, vital, and unexpected stories hail from extraordinary voices rooted in Afghanistan's two main linguistic groups (Pashto and Dari), and 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.

With an Introduction by [to come] and Afterword by Lucy Hannah, Founder and Director of Untold

Critic reviews

"Powerful, profound and deeply moving, new fiction by Afghan women writers will expand your mind and elevate your heart."—ELIF SHAFAK, author of The Island of Missing Trees, a 2021 Reese’s Book Club Pick

"Sometimes, life is having beautiful dreams in a nightmare. The authors of this book express their longing to escape a nightmare and build a liveable world. A liveable world for everyone, but especially for women at a time when their body and soul are being destroyed."—BURHAN SÖNMEZ, President of International PEN

Absolutely outstanding

These stories are ones I feel like everyone needs to read. The person who narrates took stories that I would have just been like “aw that’s sad” to crying my eyes out, her performance is spectacular.

Extraordinary collection of stories

This book isn't long, and I thought it would take two days to finish it. But it had a profound impact on me and I needed to savor the stories so I took four days. I won't ever forget these stories.

Most take part totally in Afghanistan, spread out over years. They speak of struggles like poverty and war. Many have female main characters who face struggles because they are female in a patriarchal society.

While there is sadness, frustration, and grief in abundance, there is also some hope. There is some hope simply because these stories have made it into print. Thank you to the authors and all who worked to make this a reality. The narration is excellent. It took a story or two to get used to the accent, but I never had trouble understanding her.

I highly recommend this book.