Memoir Review: I Am Malala

I have wanted to read the memoir I Am Malala: the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by MalalaYousafzai (with Christina Lamb) ever since its publication in 2013. It’s the story that was reported around the world, of a young girl’s courage in the face of terrifying events.

The book begins in the middle of the story, at its most horrifying point, when Malala, an intelligent and innocent young girl, was shot in the face by the Taliban. She was a young teenager on October 9, 2012, riding home in the school bus with her friends. A masked man forced the bus to stop, asked which one was Malala, and shot her in the left eye. As she slumped forward with that first shot, he continued to fire, hitting two of Malala’s classmates as well.

After that disturbing opening scene in the Prologue, the memoir then goes back to the beginning, as Malala describes her home in the beautiful Swat Valley of Pakistan, her family, and her happy childhood. Her beloved father started a school before she was born, so she grew up in schools, even before she was old enough to attend herself. She has two younger brothers and loving, thoughtful parents. She explains the central role that Islam played in her early years: the real Islam, not the twisted version we hear about from terrorists on the news.

Malala inherited her father’s love and value for education. She loved to read from an early age and was an excellent student. As the Taliban began to take over her formerly peaceful valley and enforce their own version of law, including bombing schools and barring girls from going to school, Malala just naturally joined her father in his impassioned speeches on the value of education. Eventually (though not nearly soon enough), the Pakistan military began fighting back against the Taliban, and their beloved home became a war zone.

In this BBC story from 2009, Malala is only 11 years old, but she appears with her father, speaking out for education, especially for girls, on the eve before their school is forced to shut down by the Taliban.

Soon after this news piece appeared, the BBC began to feature an anonymous diary, written by Malala, and her career as a public advocate for education was officially launched.

I was fascinated – and horrified – by Malala’s story and this compelling memoir. This little girl is so full of life and a love for education, and so similar to millions of other innocent little girls all over the world, and yet she had to endure so much just to go to school. You can see in that BBC video clip that she is just like your own daughters, nieces, and granddaughters – giggling with her friends, carrying her Harry Potter backpack, and pretending to be Twilight vampires with her friends as she entered her teen years.

Hearing this shocking story told directly from such an innocent and earnest young voice is particularly moving. Her family endured extensive horrors – daily bombings, constant and gruesome violence, even being forced from their homes as refugees – and still had to suffer through Malala’s shooting, extensive surgeries and lengthy hospitalization, and her long road to recovery in England, where they are finally safe. Despite having a co-author, the writing in the memoir is not perfect, but that is hardly the point. I Am Malala is a stunning story, told directly by an intelligent and articulate young girl, of a bravery almost beyond comprehension. Malala’s innocent and poignant words are so important in our world today, shedding much-needed light on a part of the world that most of us don’t understand. I am glad to have finally read this amazing memoir, and I can’t wait to see what Malala does in the future.

313 pages, Little, Brown and Company 

NOTE: The book has two sets of photos in it, of Malala and her family and her school, as well as news photos from the time, that I found endlessly fascinating.

There is also a Young Reader's version of this memoir, which would be wonderful for middle-grade and young teen readers.

Note: This post contains affiliate links. Purchases from these links provide a small commission to me (pennies per purchase), to help offset the time I spend writing for this blog, at no extra cost to you.

A documentary has also been made about Malala's story, available for streaming through Amazon, starting at $2.99:

I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education & Was Shot by the Taliban
by Malala Yousafzai, Christina LambTrade Paperback

   

I Am Malala How One Girl Stood Up for Education & Changed the World Young Readers Edition
by Malala YousafzaiHardcover

Or purchase at Northshire Bookstore in Manchester, VT:

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

   

Or purchase from the Book Depository.