The Underground Girls of Kabul

In Search of a Hidden Resistance in Afghanistan

By: Jenny Nordberg

Narrated by: Kirsten Potter

Length: 10 hrs and 56 mins

Publisher's summary

An investigative journalist uncovers a hidden custom in Afghanistan that will transform your understanding of what it means to grow up as a girl. 

In Afghanistan, a culture ruled almost entirely by men, the birth of a son is cause for celebration and the arrival of a daughter is often mourned as misfortune. A bacha posh (literally translated from Dari as dressed up like a boy) is a third kind of child - a girl temporarily raised as a boy and presented as such to the outside world. Jenny Nordberg, the reporter who broke the story of this phenomenon for the New York Times, constructs a powerful and moving account of those secretly living on the other side of a deeply segregated society where women have almost no rights and little freedom. 

The Underground Girls of Kabul is anchored by vivid characters who bring this remarkable story to life: Azita, a female parliamentarian who sees no other choice but to turn her fourth daughter Mehran into a boy; Zahra, the tomboy teenager who struggles with puberty and refuses her parents’ attempts to turn her back into a girl; Shukria, now a married mother of three after living for 20 years as a man; and Nader, who prays with Shahed, the undercover female police officer, as they both remain in male disguise as adults. 

At the heart of this emotional narrative is a new perspective on the extreme sacrifices of Afghan women and girls against the violent backdrop of America’s longest war. Divided into four parts, the book follows those born as the unwanted sex in Afghanistan, but who live as the socially favored gender through childhood and puberty, only to later be forced into marriage and childbirth. The Underground Girls of Kabul charts their dramatic life cycles, while examining our own history and the parallels to subversive actions of people who live under oppression everywhere.

©2014 Jenny Nordberg (P)2014 Random House

Critic reviews

"Five years of intensive reporting have yielded this gritty, poignant, and provocative collage of intimate portraits.… Nordberg conveys captivating nuance and complexity; just when you feel some kind of judgment or conclusive opinion is within reach, she deftly turns the tables, leaving us to reexamine our own prejudices and societal norms as we struggle with questions that are perhaps unanswerable." ( Elle)

"[A] searing exposé… Nordberg's subtle, sympathetic reportage makes this one of the most convincing portraits of Afghan culture in print." ( Publishers Weekly)

"A stunning book… Nordberg has done some staggering work in this unique, important, and compelling chronicle. Book clubs will be riveted, and will talk for hours." ( Booklist)

Important information for all

A lot of information about women's lives in Afghanistan. Important for westerners to know, especially as we venture into the cultures of nations whose history,values and mores we do not have any knowledge of.

Well written and educational.

I didn't expect to like this book - not my type of read. But it is very well written - it captured my attention from the start and had it until the end. The only downfall is that as a woman living in the U.S., I can't do anything to make the abuse of these women go away.

Not just for Women

Would you listen to The Underground Girls of Kabul again? Why?

I would. I enjoyed the post-Taliban descriptions of Afghanistan and its people. This book is so much more than describing women, but deals with gender identity, marriage, family and culture.

Any additional comments?

I have been fascinated by Afghanistan for years, and have read several books about the plight of Afghanistan's women - "Mountain to Mountain" (which I enjoyed) and "The Dressmaker of Khair Khana (much less so) among them. This book is a very journalistic account of girls who - by necessity or preference - live as boys. And yet it is so much more! It is well worth your time and credit.

Everyone should read this book to understand the world and get perspectives straight.

I loved this book as I learned so much and realized that the women In Afghanistan are doing what they can to survive not just the women, the men too. I look at the world better after reading this book. It is not as easy to judge when you have knowledge. Thank you for this book Jenny. I am proud to be a Swede!

Eye-opening and significant on many levels

A very enlightening account of the necessities of life for women in a region of the world where patriarchy, though a universal problem, is perhaps more acutely problematic. The stories are presented in very personal vignettes and threads of gender politics in Afghanistan. The author does a generally good job at avoiding the trap of appearing as the white western heroine, though she does seem at times to revel in the awe, and sometimes disbelief, from the younger Afghan girls, regarding her relative freedom. But there is not much judgment on the author's part, at least until the epilogue, as she seems to recognize the underlying truths addressed in this society, and the hypocrisy and blindness of some western ideas about gender. Listening, I started to recognize how frivolous some arguments, by all parties in Western societies, regarding gender and gender dysphoria, have become in contrast to the existential threats faced by these families, and the girls in particular. It is genuinely a thought provoking book.

Disappointing letdown

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Something more engaging. I felt like I was listening to a news story. Just didn't get much interest & I thought the narrator was very monotone in delivery.

Has The Underground Girls of Kabul turned you off from other books in this genre?

Not really - just hoped this one would be more entertaining.

How could the performance have been better?

Yes - voice was boring & monotone (in my opinion)

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from The Underground Girls of Kabul?

LOTS of it!! I couldn't even make it thru half of the book and had enough. Sorry - I tried, but just cannot continue.

Next steps

All men and especially fathers should listen to the last chapter on how they can influence a better world through supporting their daughters, wives and sisters!

Amazing!

It is a great mix of documentary and first person story telling! What a great read!!!

Wow- I had no idea!

I had no idea that this was a thing. This is an intriguing story, and I love that we get to follow actual girls experiencing this "hidden" life- it makes it much more "real" and personable. I marathon listened to this over a long weekend, and was disappointed when it was over. I highly recommend it.

intriguing & informative

It's the story of prepubescent girls living as boys (Bacha posh) & why. While it offers the basic "whys" as well as some historical context, it only touches on the culture at large & its antecedents. The book should be required reading for jr hi kids but the conversations should not stop here. This book does not not fully explain the impact of organized religion let alone religion in the hands of fundamentalists & extremists. It is always difficult to read non-fiction about oppression, let alone a total suppressive system of control that essentially converts the oppressed into enforcers. If only the USA wasn't an example of this very phenomenon of institutionalized, willful ignorance though, obviously to a lesser extent.