THE UNDERGROUND GIRLS OF KABUL In Search of a Hidden Resistance in Afghanistan

This is a thoroughly engrossing account of the “bacha posh” girls of Afghanistan. Dressed as boys, they secure higher status for their families by way of fulfilling the sought-after role of sons while gaining greater personal freedom or bringing luck to their parents' attempts to conceive future sons. Narrator Kirsten Potter takes an intellectual-sounding approach that befits the author, a journalist who conducted extensive personal interviews during research in Afghanistan. Potter's tone is analytical as she dissects the cultural and personal reasons that lead families to transform their daughters into bacha posh before they have to switch back at puberty to the restricted norms of Afghan females. S.E.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2014]