From the bestselling author of The Pearl That Broke Its Shell comes a gripping, compulsively readable, and ultimately hopeful novel about the women of today's Afghanistan.
In February 2020, the United States began to withdraw troops from Afghanistan after nearly twenty years of occupation. A whole generation of Afghan women had been born during that time. In the bustling, cosmopolitan city of Kabul, women were TV newscasters, shop owners, doctors, teachers, lawyers, even soldiers. They knew everything was about to change when the Taliban filled the streets again.
These women include Marjan, who fought with the Afghan army and will risk everything to keep her daughter, Hawa, safe. In her earlier days, Marjan was called Rahima and had lived the life of a bacha posh — a girl raised as a boy until she came of age. Forced into an early marriage, she took the name Marjan when she fled her warlord husband. She has created a whole new life for herself, one she will not give up easily.
So has Soraya, who defiantly wore red lipstick as she led the army's all-female combat force. Soraya is now a wanted woman, and her brother may choose not to shelter her from the Taliban. What will become of her? Or of Mina, a journalist whose beautiful face is known to everyone in Kabul — including the new regime?
One thing is for certain: none of these women will meekly accept her fate.
An epic saga of fear, resistance, change, and reinvention, City of Widows gives voice to the unforgettable women at a crossroads of history.
Praise
“An immersive, compelling, and unforgettable story of resistance, community, and hope in the face of extraordinary hardship.” — Jennifer Chiaverini, author of Resistance Women
About the author
Nadia Hashimi is a pediatrician turned internationally bestselling novelist and the daughter of Afghan immigrants. She has authored four books for adults as well as three novels for young readers. She lives with her family in the Washington, DC suburbs.
Perfect for readers of
A Thousand Splendid Suns, Zahra Joya's The Vanishing Girl of Kabul, and Lyse Doucet's The Finest Hotel in Kabul — all on our shelves. This is the fiction companion to that shelf.
