The Underground Girls of Kabul
By Jenny Nordberg
CROWN PUBLISHING
It sucks to be female in Afghanistan. No surprise there. Journalist Jenny Nordberg’s revelation—to Western eyes, anyway—is that more than a few Afghan families raise their girls as boys. The practice, bacha posh, accepted when done discreetly, serves as a roundabout way for girls to attend school and earn money, and for couples who lack sons to avoid public humiliation. The real tension comes with puberty, when the bacha posh is expected to give up her ambitions, respectful treatment, male playmates, and even her freedom to leave the home. Nordberg’s intimate exploration leaves us rooting for her brave subjects, if deeply pessimistic about the prospects of women in this maddeningly repressive culture.
This review originally appeared in our September/October issue of Mother Jones.
