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I Am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban

Malala Yousafzai

Start date: December 1, 2016

Finish date: December 31, 2016

Discussion: Monthly Group Reads

Why we're reading this: December's theme/topic is Historical Event…more
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What Members Thought

Oct 31, 2014 Rebecca Robinson rated it it was amazing

This story is a powerful one and a sampler of all the wonderful things I expect Malala to accomplish in her lifetime. She's strong, beautiful, inspiring and a normal teenage girl that did some really extraordinary things! She's an inspiration for all ages, and all children and I have to say she is one of my heroes.

I hope to be hearing more and more about her as the years go by and I hope she will inspire others to stand up for what is right, even if you face terrible strife and violence. ...more

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May 26, 2015 Martha rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2016, non-fiction, read-the-world, feminism, 2016-yorwoc, read-women-world, bipoc-authors-south-asian

I went into this book with quite high expectations, having seen a few interviews with Malala and also having seen the film/documentary that was partly based on this book. It's possible that this caused an issue because I knew all the highlights, so I found the rest of it a little slow, and not what I'd anticipated.

Firstly, if this was a rating just about Malala and the key points of her life, it would clearly be five stars. Here is a girl who shows absolute fearlessness in the face of terrorism I went into this book with quite high expectations, having seen a few interviews with Malala and also having seen the film/documentary that was partly based on this book. It's possible that this caused an issue because I knew all the highlights, so I found the rest of it a little slow, and not what I'd anticipated.

Firstly, if this was a rating just about Malala and the key points of her life, it would clearly be five stars. Here is a girl who shows absolute fearlessness in the face of terrorism and oppression, unwavering commitment to education as a basic human right and who rights very eloquently - before we even consider her young age. Add to that her father being a feminist in a culture that does not encourage it, as well as her mother's support despite fearing the danger it presented to her child.

What pulled the rating down for me was the emphasis on the history and politics of Pakistan. It was certainly interesting, and long overdue to be reading something other than media sensation about terrorism and the Taliban we tend to get in the West. When you have a teenager telling you how much she wants to go home, despite having been shot in the head for standing up to an extremist organisation over her basic right to get an education, it forces the reader to take stock about what we're told about this region. The same applies to her religion - here is an account of what it's like for everyday Muslims to live under the terror of the Taliban, claiming to enforce rules in their religion which simply do not exist. Here is yet more evidence against Islamophobia, and the ugly misrepresentation of an otherwise peaceful religion.

However, I think I expected to read more about her beliefs in education and her work to promote that around the world, because she has become one of many feminist icons for me, and that's what has drawn me to her. I appreciate that she needed to give background in order to illustrate how she came to the moment of being shot, but I hadn't expected a history book. I found it quite challenging in places as I'm unfamiliar with a lot of the names and the different tribes, so I wasn't always completely clear what was being talked about. Perhaps if I'd realised that before reading it, I might have been less bothered by it, and so able to just appreciate it.

Overall, it is an amazing story and Malala is worthy of huge amounts of respect and admiration, but as a memoir, it is not an easy read. ...more

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Mar 07, 2020 Joanne rated it liked it

Certainly a tragic and compelling story of this spirited and ambitious young girl and her father's influence upon her. Maybe it's just me, but I found it somewhat difficult to follow the story on audio, so I switched to the book mid-read. I'm glad to now know Malala's story and will be watching her and her foundation in the future. ...more

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May 23, 2021 Heather rated it really liked it

Shelves: audiobook

An eye opening and powerful book. I learned a lot about Pakistan and the Taliban. The audiobook was very well done. I admire people who feel as passionately about things in life as Malala does about education.

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