Sinopsis

On Tuesday, 9 October, 2012, a fifteen-year-old Pakistani girl was shot in the face at point-blank range because she had the temerity to stand up to the Taliban. That girl, Malala Yousafzai, survived the brutal attack, and the shocking story made headlines around the world. Overnight, Malala became a global symbol of peaceful protest and education for all. She was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, the youngest person ever to be singled out in that way.

Malala said: “I hope the book will reach people around the world, so they realise how difficult it is for some children to get access to education. I want to tell my story, but it will also be the story of 61 million children who can’t get education. I want it to be part of the campaign to give every boy and girl the right to go to school. It is their basic right”

Arzu Tahsin said: “This book will be a document to bravery, courage and vision. Malala is so young to have experienced so much and I have no doubt that her story will be an inspiration to readers from all generations who believe in the right to education and the freedom to pursue it”

“Malala is already an inspiration to millions around the world. Reading her story of courage and survival will open minds, enlarge hearts, and eventually allow more girls and boys to receive the education they hunger for,” said Michael Pietsch, executive vice president and publisher of Little, Brown and Company.

In her memoir she will finally tell, in her own words, what happened on that day and the moving and inspiring story of her determination not be intimidated by extremists. It will also be about the family who gave Malala her remarkable courage.

I come from a country that was created at midnight. When I almost died it was just after midday. It was Tuesday, October 9, 2012, not the best of days as it was the middle of school exams, though as a bookish girl I don’t mind them as much as my friends do. We’d finished for the day and I was squashed between my friends and teachers on the benches of the open-back truck we use as a school bus. There were no windows, just thick plastic sheeting that flapped at the sides and was too yellowed and dusty to see out of, and a postage stamp of open sky at the back through which I caught a glimpse of a kite wheeling up and down. It was pink, my favorite color.

The world first learned of Malala from an anonymous blog she wrote for the BBC Urdu service about a schoolgirl’s life as the Taliban rose to power in her town. The blog became an overnight sensation, and she and her father, Ziauddin, a school principal and educational campaigner, were featured in a New York Times documentary, “Class Dismissed.” Eventually, Malala’s identity could no longer be kept secret, and both she and her father were singled out for death by the Taliban.

Since the shooting and her miraculous recovery, Malala has been the recipient of numerous peace awards around the world. Her father has been appointed a UN educational advisor, and 12 July has been designated by the United Nations secretary-general as Malala Day. The Malala Fund, set up on behalf of her and her family, is dedicated to the education and empowerment of girls in Pakistan and around the world.