What do you think?
Rate this book
LIVE
Nominee for the 2025 Goodreads Choice Awards
Finding My Way: A Memoir
How do you rebuild yourself when your whole world changes overnight?
Thrust onto the public stage at fifteen years old after the Taliban's brutal attack on her life, Malala quickly became an international icon known for bravery and resilience. But away from the cameras and crowds, she spent years struggling to find her place in an unfamiliar world. Now, for the first time ever, Malala takes readers beyond the headlines in Finding My Way - a vulnerable, surprising memoir that buzzes with authenticity, sharp humour and tenderness.
Finding My Way is a story of friendship and first love, of anxiety and self-discovery, of trying to stay true to yourself when everyone wants to tell you who you are. In it, Malala traces her path from high school loner to reckless college student to a young woman at peace with her past. Through candid, often messy moments like nearly failing exams, getting ghosted and meeting the love of her life, Malala reminds us that real role models aren't perfect - they're human.
In this astonishing memoir, Malala reintroduces herself to the world, sharing how she navigated life as someone whose darkest moments threatened to define her - while seeking the freedom to find out who she truly is. Finding My Way is an intimate look at the life of a young woman taking charge of her destiny - and a deeply personal testament to the strength it takes to be unapologetically yourself.
Thrust onto the public stage at fifteen years old after the Taliban's brutal attack on her life, Malala quickly became an international icon known for bravery and resilience. But away from the cameras and crowds, she spent years struggling to find her place in an unfamiliar world. Now, for the first time ever, Malala takes readers beyond the headlines in Finding My Way - a vulnerable, surprising memoir that buzzes with authenticity, sharp humour and tenderness.
Finding My Way is a story of friendship and first love, of anxiety and self-discovery, of trying to stay true to yourself when everyone wants to tell you who you are. In it, Malala traces her path from high school loner to reckless college student to a young woman at peace with her past. Through candid, often messy moments like nearly failing exams, getting ghosted and meeting the love of her life, Malala reminds us that real role models aren't perfect - they're human.
In this astonishing memoir, Malala reintroduces herself to the world, sharing how she navigated life as someone whose darkest moments threatened to define her - while seeking the freedom to find out who she truly is. Finding My Way is an intimate look at the life of a young woman taking charge of her destiny - and a deeply personal testament to the strength it takes to be unapologetically yourself.
320 pages, Paperback
First published October 21, 2025
1354 people are currently reading
28592 people want to read
About the author
Malala Yousafzai
19 books5,845 followersGirls education activist and youngest-ever Nobel Prize laureate.
New memoir, FINDING MY WAY, and book tour tickets available for pre-order today!
New memoir, FINDING MY WAY, and book tour tickets available for pre-order today!
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 433 reviews
October 16, 2025
Malala!!! The woman you are!!!! I could not love a memoir more. It was full of honesty and vulnerability. I may not have won a Nobel peace prize, but Malala was beyond relatable. Like sitting down for a cup of tea with your friend who unapologetically gets it and gets you. Cup is overflowing
October 25, 2025
This is a wonderful memoir, an honest look at Malala Yousafzai's life. You may remember her as the 15 year old girl who suffered as the result of a Taliban attack. She's taken charge of her destiny since becoming the youngest winner of the Nobel Peace Prize and has stepped out of the spotlight to navigate life on her terms.
I think the most impactful thing about this story is that this 28 year old reveals that it is ok to make mistakes along the way and that the journey to finding oneself isn't always paved in perfection.
I was happy to find this book as I had followed Malala's story and was curious about what happened in the years following her escape. I hope she continues to share with those of us who wish her well.
I was gifted this copy and was under no obligation to provide a review.
I think the most impactful thing about this story is that this 28 year old reveals that it is ok to make mistakes along the way and that the journey to finding oneself isn't always paved in perfection.
I was happy to find this book as I had followed Malala's story and was curious about what happened in the years following her escape. I hope she continues to share with those of us who wish her well.
I was gifted this copy and was under no obligation to provide a review.
October 20, 2025
An incredible memoir with so much heart, humor and wisdom. I’m going to beg everyone in my life to read this.
November 1, 2025
Wonderful , genuine, and impressive human.
Want to read
September 18, 2025Pre-reading: I read Malala’s first memoir and was immersed. Looking forward to this one!
October 25, 2025
STOP WHAT YOU’RE DOING AND READ THIS BOOK!!
I am honestly speechless. I devoured this book because I could not put it down. Malala’s writing style is so warm and personal it felt like I was reading a letter from a friend. This book is beautiful, emotional, and full of honesty. It made me cry on more than one occasion and it made me reflect on my own life and feel deeply grateful for the freedoms and opportunities I have as a woman.
Malala shares her story with such strength and grace, and it reminded me how powerful it is when someone speaks their truth. It is easily my favorite read of 2025 so far. Everyone, not just women, should read this book. It is inspiring, moving, and one of those stories that stays with you long after you finish the last page.
I am honestly speechless. I devoured this book because I could not put it down. Malala’s writing style is so warm and personal it felt like I was reading a letter from a friend. This book is beautiful, emotional, and full of honesty. It made me cry on more than one occasion and it made me reflect on my own life and feel deeply grateful for the freedoms and opportunities I have as a woman.
Malala shares her story with such strength and grace, and it reminded me how powerful it is when someone speaks their truth. It is easily my favorite read of 2025 so far. Everyone, not just women, should read this book. It is inspiring, moving, and one of those stories that stays with you long after you finish the last page.
November 10, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐
I started Finding My Way a bit skeptical but ended up deeply moved. The parts about her time at Oxford and her evolving relationship with her parents are the most engaging, funny, grounded, and full of warmth. I loved the glimpses into the messy realities of her activism and what it took to build a network of schools in remote parts of Pakistan and beyond while proving herself academically and adjusting to living in a new country. I also connected with her reflections on marriage and mental health—the exhaustion, the pressure, and the slow work of finding peace with both. Malala writes with striking clarity about hypocrisy, describing how first world male leaders who once championed her ignored her pleas to help evacuate Malala Fund teachers after the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. She captures the tension of being both a product of global institutions and a critic of them, caught between gratitude and disillusionment. If there’s one thing I missed, it was a deeper engagement with the broader ideological criticism around her activism. She acknowledges the noise, but doesn’t really unpack it, and I wondered what her private reckoning with that might look like. Still, this is a thoughtful, layered, and often disarmingly funny portrait of a young woman defining herself under global scrutiny.
I started Finding My Way a bit skeptical but ended up deeply moved. The parts about her time at Oxford and her evolving relationship with her parents are the most engaging, funny, grounded, and full of warmth. I loved the glimpses into the messy realities of her activism and what it took to build a network of schools in remote parts of Pakistan and beyond while proving herself academically and adjusting to living in a new country. I also connected with her reflections on marriage and mental health—the exhaustion, the pressure, and the slow work of finding peace with both. Malala writes with striking clarity about hypocrisy, describing how first world male leaders who once championed her ignored her pleas to help evacuate Malala Fund teachers after the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. She captures the tension of being both a product of global institutions and a critic of them, caught between gratitude and disillusionment. If there’s one thing I missed, it was a deeper engagement with the broader ideological criticism around her activism. She acknowledges the noise, but doesn’t really unpack it, and I wondered what her private reckoning with that might look like. Still, this is a thoughtful, layered, and often disarmingly funny portrait of a young woman defining herself under global scrutiny.
November 17, 2025
A beautiful and engaging memoir!
Most of the world knows at least the basics of Malala's story: she was the girl who stood up to the Taliban and lived to tell her story after being shot, youngest ever Nobel laureate, and champion for girl's education.
Now all grown up, Malala shares her true thoughts and feelings about her work, college experience, family, and friendships.
I've always enjoyed hearing her speak but often wondered if she was able to have a "normal" life under her incredible circumstances.
I loved reading her honest struggles with school, being torn between cultural tradition and finding her own way, her complicated relationship with her family, and the very non-traditional courtship with her husband, Asser.
Most of the world knows at least the basics of Malala's story: she was the girl who stood up to the Taliban and lived to tell her story after being shot, youngest ever Nobel laureate, and champion for girl's education.
Now all grown up, Malala shares her true thoughts and feelings about her work, college experience, family, and friendships.
I've always enjoyed hearing her speak but often wondered if she was able to have a "normal" life under her incredible circumstances.
I loved reading her honest struggles with school, being torn between cultural tradition and finding her own way, her complicated relationship with her family, and the very non-traditional courtship with her husband, Asser.
November 16, 2025
I felt like I was catching up with a friend while I read Malala describe settling into life in Birmingham, then her college years at Oxford, including how she coped with what was later diagnosed as PTSD, and she met and married her husband Asser.
My impression is that Malala is at a place of acceptance and peace in her life. She comes across as friendly and gracious and just one of us really. That's not to downplay her truly challenging journey, but rather to say that I am truly happy for her as she seems genuinely happy with her life.
I loved how Malala describes her clothing for university – “Delicious floral patterns that could make you dizzy if you stared at them too long. Black, ivory and tan were out of the question because, according to her [mum], neutrals were a waste of good fabric.”
Malala writes, “My scarves reminded me of home and helped me connect to a world I had lost. No matter what the misogynists or Islamophobes said, I wanted girls in Pakistan to know that I had not forgotten them.”
I got a chuckle out of Malala's criteria for a possible suitor. She writes, “My knees went weak at the sight of a dark beard, wooly forearms and tufts of chest hair poking out of a shirt.”
When describing Asser’s attributes, “Most of all, I loved his kind and gentle heart.”
Her mum is aghast at the idea of her sharing her favourite wedding photo as “a photo showing any physical contact between a man and a woman, even a husband and wife, is prohibited.”
However, after much thought she decides to share the photo worldwide stating, “I wanted my community to see that men can show affection for their wives, that devotion and love are the highest forms of honour.” Wow! I love this.
“My life with Asser is one of freedom and joy.” She truly seems to have found a sense of peace and belonging in where she is today.
Her final words in this book, “Do not lose hope.”
My impression is that Malala is at a place of acceptance and peace in her life. She comes across as friendly and gracious and just one of us really. That's not to downplay her truly challenging journey, but rather to say that I am truly happy for her as she seems genuinely happy with her life.
I loved how Malala describes her clothing for university – “Delicious floral patterns that could make you dizzy if you stared at them too long. Black, ivory and tan were out of the question because, according to her [mum], neutrals were a waste of good fabric.”
Malala writes, “My scarves reminded me of home and helped me connect to a world I had lost. No matter what the misogynists or Islamophobes said, I wanted girls in Pakistan to know that I had not forgotten them.”
I got a chuckle out of Malala's criteria for a possible suitor. She writes, “My knees went weak at the sight of a dark beard, wooly forearms and tufts of chest hair poking out of a shirt.”
When describing Asser’s attributes, “Most of all, I loved his kind and gentle heart.”
Her mum is aghast at the idea of her sharing her favourite wedding photo as “a photo showing any physical contact between a man and a woman, even a husband and wife, is prohibited.”
However, after much thought she decides to share the photo worldwide stating, “I wanted my community to see that men can show affection for their wives, that devotion and love are the highest forms of honour.” Wow! I love this.
“My life with Asser is one of freedom and joy.” She truly seems to have found a sense of peace and belonging in where she is today.
Her final words in this book, “Do not lose hope.”
November 10, 2025
Malala is the coolest. I really enjoyed hearing her speak so honestly about the pressures of being in the spotlight (while trying to perform well academically at Oxford), managing anxiety and PTSD, and how awful (and exhilarating) dating can be. I’m so glad she used this book as an opportunity to remind us that she’s just another human, experiencing the ups and downs like we all do. PS - She’s funny as hell.
November 5, 2025
A memoir filled with honesty, authenticity and vulnerability. It’s such an engaging read - like having a chat with a friend, despite everything Malala has been through and accomplished. She writes about her university experience and mental health challenges openly and candidly, in a way that is deeply relatable to so many people. Malala’s wisdom and humour shines through on every page, balanced beautifully with her passion for girls’ education and her reflections and contemplations about life, marriage, trauma, friendship, love and growth. This is an inspiring and heart-felt read.
November 20, 2025
Her first book felt like a child trying to narrate a life far too big for her age. But this one felt completely different. The writing is warm, honest and sharp with a raw emotional depth that pulls you in. I loved her reflection on feeling like a kite held tightly by her father while he proclaimed her to be a bird free to soar high. I think it's a quiet ache that many of us can relate to.
As someone who spent years feeling self-conscious and constantly seeking approval, the pressure Malala carried in being expected to represent her roots perfectly, even while people back home waited for any reason to tear her down, felt monumental. It’s sad that she needed layers of security and official permission just to visit the place she called home. Yet she built a school for girls there, worked on making education accessible to the displaced and supported many relatives all while managing her academic and social commitments.
Her chapters set in Oxford where she wrote about her friendships, the pressure to keep up with the syllabus and the feeling of being young and free in an elite space offered a window beyond her activism. And I loved how effortlessly she shifted from her own confusion about love and marriage to her anxiety for her employees and the future of women and girls in Taliban occupied Afghanistan.
Her experience with drugs was written so vividly that the panic, the slowing down and memories crashing in felt painfully real. Her therapy sessions and the lessons she drew from them were unexpectedly grounding and honest.
Malala has clearly found her way. She has contributed so much to the cause she believes in and has uplifted many girls. She is a true feminist and she will no doubt continue to grow, accomplish more and hopefully write many more books.
As someone who spent years feeling self-conscious and constantly seeking approval, the pressure Malala carried in being expected to represent her roots perfectly, even while people back home waited for any reason to tear her down, felt monumental. It’s sad that she needed layers of security and official permission just to visit the place she called home. Yet she built a school for girls there, worked on making education accessible to the displaced and supported many relatives all while managing her academic and social commitments.
Her chapters set in Oxford where she wrote about her friendships, the pressure to keep up with the syllabus and the feeling of being young and free in an elite space offered a window beyond her activism. And I loved how effortlessly she shifted from her own confusion about love and marriage to her anxiety for her employees and the future of women and girls in Taliban occupied Afghanistan.
Her experience with drugs was written so vividly that the panic, the slowing down and memories crashing in felt painfully real. Her therapy sessions and the lessons she drew from them were unexpectedly grounding and honest.
Malala has clearly found her way. She has contributed so much to the cause she believes in and has uplifted many girls. She is a true feminist and she will no doubt continue to grow, accomplish more and hopefully write many more books.
November 6, 2025
i can't wait to hear her talk about this book on friday 🥹🥹
———————————————
220
After sharing the good news with everyone I knew, I collapsed backward on my bed, still buzzing with happiness. That’s when I realized: I won. From the time I was a girl, I had carried this dream of graduating from university, even when I didn’t know a single woman who had done it. I won’t be a teenage bride and spend my life wondering what I could have contributed to the world, I had told myself. I will go to college. The Taliban had forced me out of school when I was eleven years old and tried to kill me when I was fifteen. With bombs and guns, they’d fought against little girls who only wanted to learn, to understand the world around them. There were long periods of my childhood and teen years when even finishing high school seemed impossible.
I am not someone who believes everyone should go to college; I know plenty of brilliant people who don’t have a degree. But, for me, education was my guiding light, the only way I could save myself from a life I didn’t want.
Now, no matter where my life went next, I was a college graduate, and I always would be. It didn’t mean the end of misogyny or an enduring triumph for the right to education, of course. This was a personal victory. Between me and the men who’d tried to stop me, the fight was over. I had won.
———————————————
———————————————
220
After sharing the good news with everyone I knew, I collapsed backward on my bed, still buzzing with happiness. That’s when I realized: I won. From the time I was a girl, I had carried this dream of graduating from university, even when I didn’t know a single woman who had done it. I won’t be a teenage bride and spend my life wondering what I could have contributed to the world, I had told myself. I will go to college. The Taliban had forced me out of school when I was eleven years old and tried to kill me when I was fifteen. With bombs and guns, they’d fought against little girls who only wanted to learn, to understand the world around them. There were long periods of my childhood and teen years when even finishing high school seemed impossible.
I am not someone who believes everyone should go to college; I know plenty of brilliant people who don’t have a degree. But, for me, education was my guiding light, the only way I could save myself from a life I didn’t want.
Now, no matter where my life went next, I was a college graduate, and I always would be. It didn’t mean the end of misogyny or an enduring triumph for the right to education, of course. This was a personal victory. Between me and the men who’d tried to stop me, the fight was over. I had won.
———————————————
November 15, 2025
4.5⭐️📖 i loved learning more about Malala! Her growth and development was really interesting to read about. It was so fun to read about her experiencing the girlhood we are so incredibly lucky to have in our part of the world. She is an incredible activist and woman.
November 13, 2025
Malala and I were both university students playing Among Us in the pandemic and I think that’s beautiful… This was a very beautiful memoir I would recommend
November 3, 2025
6/5 ⭐️ One of my favorite books I’ve read this year, by far! I couldn’t put it down & read it in one sitting (sorry Sunday evening plans). I love Malala and find her work in women’s education so inspirational, so it’s no surprise I loved this (I’ve been waiting for months for the release date). This book far exceeded any expectations I had, though — it almost reads like a novel, with the stories & experiences she tells, woven in with past recounts and insightful reflections, advice, and learnings. I loved the sections she wrote about her mother because you can see the changes in both her reflection and relationship from her first book. I also loved hearing her convictions about gender equity, independence, marriage, and love — this is one of the first books I’ve related almost completely to someone on these topics, which was so affirming to read.
Malala, your stories & insights brought me to tears throughout this read (I probably spent half the book crying) and I’m so grateful you put this story into words!
Malala, your stories & insights brought me to tears throughout this read (I probably spent half the book crying) and I’m so grateful you put this story into words!
November 7, 2025
MALALA YOU ARE EVERYTHING TO ME everyone needs to read this women are amazing
Read
November 9, 2025An incredibly genuine memoir that has humor and heart and does not shy away from the "messiness" of self-discovery. As a reader, you might come to the table with preconceived notions of who Malala is. This memoir serves as a reintroduction. Malala explores it all from first crushes to failing exams to seeking friendships to falling in love (all while also navigating the global stage!). I recommend the audiobook since it seems like you are sharing a cup of tea with her.
Read
November 1, 2025I love the way Malala wrote her life story. From a lonely girl, to a student struggling her way through college, to a young woman figuring out who she is and making peace with her past.
Listened to the audiobook while also reading the physical, but I always recommend the audiobook when the author is the narrator. This way I feel like the author connects you to their story and you can just feel the emotions.
Absolutely loved this!
Listened to the audiobook while also reading the physical, but I always recommend the audiobook when the author is the narrator. This way I feel like the author connects you to their story and you can just feel the emotions.
Absolutely loved this!
November 5, 2025
When you (or at least when I) think of Malala, you think of her heroism and bravery. You never stop to think how she was such a young girl. Just a teenager. Thrust into the global spotlight. Burdened with the weight of saving girls from going without an education. Moved to a country she didn't know. Still being governed by her small village illiterate mother. Malala is so forthcoming in this story and I was really grateful for it. She, like many immigrants, finds herself not only funding her own family with her speaking engagements, but also family back home, buying homes for them, paying college tuition, whatever her father offers their relatives. He offers her income, as he believes in our culture is his right and his duty. She is 16. She is a child trying to get by in school but knows she cannot turn down a single speaking engagement because that is money that pays her cousin's college tuition. Add in the constant refrain of "what will people say" from her parents every time she wants to do anything a little bit to assimilate to her new home in the UK. The weight of this is unimaginable. I was drowning just reading it. I was not surprised by her panic attacks as she navigated all of this at Oxford. I was also not surprised, sadly, how ill equipped she was for a support base to deal with these very real and scary mental health challenges because South Asians don't believe in mental health care. She just needed to suck it up and not complain. Every piece of me wanted to reach in that book and hug her. And walk her to therapy. She does go and I'm so happy for her. I was especially happy for her when she meets and eventually marries Asser, her very handsome, very supportive partner. The struggle she has getting to marriage and not wanting to give up her independence was very real and I appreciated her honesty. Also, I appreciated her humor. Malala is funny, y'all! Malala really gave us more than I ever expected in this memoir, on top of all she has given the world already.
November 15, 2025
Reading IN DEPTH about Malala’s first bong hit wasn’t on my 2025 bingo card! A lot of people know Malala’s story and I think she really wanted to get across in her story that she is just a normal girl! Most of this memoir details her time in college & shortly after!
The neuro rehab lover in me enjoyed hearing about the impact her complex brain injury had on her life. So many layers of PTSD, her culture’s view of women/emotions, high pressure to perform, being a public figure from such a young age!
The neuro rehab lover in me enjoyed hearing about the impact her complex brain injury had on her life. So many layers of PTSD, her culture’s view of women/emotions, high pressure to perform, being a public figure from such a young age!
November 16, 2025
The audiobook really felt like a conversation with a friend in the best way possible. It’s funny and sad and a love story all in one. A good reminder that activists and figureheads are also just humans, and it’s cool to see Malala just get to be a person after everything.
November 14, 2025
This was a well-deserved follow-up to I AM MALALA. It was beautiful to see her growth and how she was still dealing with the intense PTSD in conjunction with getting shot. Malala is a wonderful inspiration, and I found her quite relatable, despite coming from very different cultures. If you read her first book, I highly recommend reading the follow-up. It’s a well-deserved part 2 to a very beautiful story.
November 7, 2025
I will always read anything she writes
November 5, 2025
4.5 stars
Again, a gripping, beautifully told, honest story full of inspiration. I loved listening to the narration by Malala herself though reading it physically would have made it possible to gather some quotes like I did with her first book.
Story 9
Atmosphere 10
Writing Style 9
Pace 9
Setup 8
Enjoyment/Engrossment 9
Narration 9
Again, a gripping, beautifully told, honest story full of inspiration. I loved listening to the narration by Malala herself though reading it physically would have made it possible to gather some quotes like I did with her first book.
Story 9
Atmosphere 10
Writing Style 9
Pace 9
Setup 8
Enjoyment/Engrossment 9
Narration 9
November 4, 2025
soooooo fucking good love you mals you’re amazing in every way
October 31, 2025
This was my first audiobook ever and it ate. Very interesting perspective + so refreshingly real. Free w Spotify premium
October 30, 2025
100% recommend the audio version of this book - it was very engaging
October 25, 2025
One of the best books that I’ve read in a very long time. Relatable and full of hope.
November 17, 2025
I am not a memoir, autobiography, biography girl by any means but WOW did I love this. I can’t believe Malala was in her freshman year the same time I was. I appreciated her honesty throughout, especially on her relationship with her parents.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 433 reviews