My Forbidden Face

My Forbidden Face frames a fragment of Afghanistan's bloody history through the eyes of its author, Latifa. Now 22, Latifa was 16 when the Taliban seized power in 1996. Overnight, Afghani women were stripped of their aspirations, their pleasures and their freedom. She describes the sudden change that transformed her home into her prison and her clothes into symbols of shame in evocative yet matter-of-fact tones. The facts are familiar to us from countless articles and petitions but reading them here in a personal account brings home the state of abject fear Afghani women had to adjust to as the new reality of their lives. Every day Radio Sharia, the Taliban's mouthpiece, would broadcast harsh new decrees to bind the confines of peoples' lives ever tighter. The severest restrictions were reserved for women: they were forbidden to go out unaccompanied by a male relative--which meant poor widows risked beatings and even death, they were forbidden to work or to go to school and even forbidden health care--since that would have meant being treated by a man. From being an educated, outgoing girl who dreamed of becoming a journalist, Latifa was plunged into sickness and depression. But somehow, this timid--and by Western standards--sheltered girl, finds the enormous courage to start running a "school" in her living room--just as her mother, a nurse runs an illicit surgery for women from their home. This combination of naivety and worldliness makes Latifa's voice extremely poignant. My Forbidden Face is a powerful, readable little book you will want to absorb in one gulp. Not only does it give a voice to the nameless sufferings of so many but its bravery and determination are inspiring lessons to us all. --Rebecca Johnson

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Very powerful - Rated
This book gave a very intimate and personal view on Afghanistan during the 90s, and the terrible destruction that the country saw as various warlords, Soviets and the Taliban fought for control. The barbarism of the Taliban is shocking, and the author communicates the general environment of terror and fear that people lived in. It's a very good book.

The Real Deal - Rated
There you are, a normal, modern, teenage Islamic girl living a civilised, liberal lifestyle then suddenly some guys come along and take things right back to the dark ages. A must read for anyone who wants an insider's look at life under the Taliban.

Inspiring and terrifying - Rated
I read this book on the recommendation of an Amazon reviewer who compared it to "Bookseller of Kabul". I agree that "My Forbidden Face" gives another side of the same story, as the author even lived in the same neighborhood as the bookseller. Both books, however, are written by women--women of comparable education and expectations, but of completely different circumstances. Latifa, unfortunately, did not have the luxury of packing up and leaving when the story was over. When the Taliban took over Kabul, terror and depression soon overtook disbelief. Latifa was studying to become a journalist and begins writing down events to keep herself sane. The personal emotion is balanced with political facts and well-considered opinions, her personal narrative being used as a powerful supporting example of the political struggle being played out before her. She repeatedly points out inconsistencies of the Taliban decrees with the teachings of the Koran and gives a commendable outline of the unfolding political dramas.

Eventually she can be passive no longer. She risked her life to fight against the brainwashing that passed for education under the Taliban and to help her mother care for women who could not legally obtain any healthcare. The fact that this story can even be told is something of a miracle in itself.
The terrifying thing about this book is that it is NOT a story, it is a masterful piece of journalism--and we would do well to read it as a cautionary tale. Latifa's life, all too similar to ours, is completely overthrown, not by religious fanatics, but by power mongers using religion as a guise for their own ends. In the wake of the London bombings (7/05), with the hindsight of ethnic cleansing in Yugoslavia, this book should serve as a powerful reminder that what brutality reveals is a lust for power, no matter how loudly it cries of religion.

A book everyone should read - Rated
Latifa, tells in a way no journalist can, what it is like to suddenly loseyour freedom, to live in constant fear of beatings, and how the humanspirit will not be bowed even under the worst conditions.
Her familylife is described in detail, how life in Kabul under the Talibanoccupation was to her and her mother and father, sisters and brothers. HowIranian radio and the BBC were the only contact with the outside world,but even that had to be listened to in secret. How they felt the world hadabandoned Afghanistan to its fate .
Also she describes her brothersincarceration in a political prison, and many aspects of Muslim life atthat time. This short book goes a long way to understand something of thelife of ordinary Afghanis, and the relationship with other people in theregion.

great human story! - Rated
great story explaining the shock and disbelief faced by this teenage girl when the Taliban came in to Kabul. Also explains quite clearly how they go against mainstream Islamic teachings and mention some of the horrible and evil things they have done. Its interesting to get a womans take on this instead of some "decree" by a scholar or whatever... the anguish and pain faced by her and her family, as well as the thousands of others must have been terrible... a courageous girl!