Courage: My Story of Persecution

by Freshta Tori Jan, Zainab Nasrati (Series Editor), Zoe Ruiz (Series Editor)

Continuing this propulsive middle grade nonfiction series, a young woman once persecuted by the Taliban shares her journey to becoming a community activist. As a girl and as part of an ethnic minority in Afghanistan, Freshta Tori Jan was persecuted relentlessly. Her family faced kidnappings and daily murder attempts on the bus, on the way to school, in the workplace, and beyond. Freshta’s school was shut down by the Taliban, and many of her friends were murdered and shot. Her journey through poverty, terrorism, and other forms of injustice has enabled her to be a voice for those unable to share their stories and those unable to receive the opportunities she has sought. She believes in empowering youth in order to bring about change and be the leaders of today and tomorrow.

With a voice that is both accessible and engaging, Freshta brings forward a captivating first-person account of strength, resilience, and determination, and delivers compelling narrative nonfiction by young people, for young people. Black-and-white spot art

Genres: Nonfiction, Middle Grade, Biography

128 pages, Hardcover

Published January 11, 2022

Reviews

[Lisa Hammer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m looking forward to introducing this series to my daughters. I thought the first person perspective was so helpful in explaining what people have gone through in Afghanistan. I’m looking forward to checking out the other books in this series.

[Jeanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Because of a father who was brave and selfless and his pure courage gave his daughter the gift of being a fighter, a risk-taker but most important the wings of courage.

Freshta told her story of persecution of Hazaras by the Taliban. Her life in Pakistan which includes death of family members, neighbors, and friends. The difficulty of getting an education and basic living. It is very horrific. A story that needs to be told but with careful consideration to children. Ever since Covid, I feel that children have enough stress in their lives and a story like this could cause more anxiety. This book is geared towards middle school students but even so it is very heavy.

A special thank you to Norton Young Readers and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.

[Israa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy. This upper elementary chapter book may be difficult for some readers, while it is entirely clean. The biography is about a strong girl in Afghanistan who overcomes more than just the Taliban to continue education in the U.S. I learned new things about different kinds of racism and prejudice in Afghanistan. However, I felt the theme of "courage" was not shown as strongly as it could have been. Perhaps "persistence" or "sacrifice" would have been better. The discussion questions, timeline of events, and summaries at the end of the book make this a great book for discussion or classroom use. I will recommend this for our school library.