Andrew Benesh’s Reviews > The Underground Girls of Kabul: In Search of a Hidden Resistance in Afghanistan > Status Update

Done! The chapter on Azita's Father, and the epilogue on patriarchal social structures really for together well. But exactly a happy ending, but it does have glimmers of hope in the resilience of Afghan women.

The incidence and inescapability of domestic violence in Afghanistan is only briefly touched on, but could easily fill a whole book. The light analysis on gendered foreign aid could use more depth, but I understand it's not the focus of the book.

Afghan divorce is a truly convoluted, amorphous process.

I really enjoyed the interviews with some women living as men in Afghanistan; it puts a new level on gender performance as political act. The larger connection to Zoroastrianism was unexpected but makes sense.

Now I feel bad for Zahra. The wedding and Chasity expectations are all too familiar.

The family dynamic between the girl's is fascinating. It's clear that enacting the boy role is more than a superficial activity.

I'm surprised by the prevalence and cultural acceptance. The girl's reactions make sense, both positively and negatively, given the larger economic realities. The mythology around child birth, and intentional occlusion of sex ed is alarming.

The prologue presents an interesting hook, and has me wondering about the incidence of this phenomenon in other heavily sex segregated cultures. Azita herself is a fascinating woman.