Author of International Best-seller, The Pearl That Broke Its Shell
Author of International Best-seller, The Pearl That Broke Its Shell
Blog and Media
Sparks like Stars | Behind the Book
A few years back, I pinned a newspaper article to the corkboard above my desk. It was a short piece…
A House Without Windows | Behind the Book
Photographer Gabriela Maj published a stunning collection of photographs from Kabul’s Badam Bagh prison. Her book, Almond Garden, is bleak and colorful.…
When the Moon is Low | Beyond the Story
Often, I have readers tell me that my story made them want to learn more – it is incredibly rewarding…
The Pearl That Broke Its Shell | Behind the Story
This is a story I had to tell. My parents were born and raised in Afghanistan in the 1950s and…
Music for Troubled Times
On Sunday evening, my husband and I attended a concert meant to broaden our horizons — Three Letters from Sarajevo,…
On Valor and Vitality – Lessons from Senator McCain’s “Battle” Against Cancer
On Valor and Vitality 8.27.18 Senator John McCain’s “maverick” politics placed him among the most intriguing contemporary legislators. His policies…
The Throes of History
The following semi-fictional piece was originally published in Italian on March 7, 2016 in la Repubblica. I wrote it in…
Guest Post: Teaching Students in Afghanistan via Technoloy
Lea Gabay is a recent graduate of San Francisco State University’s Masters program in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of…
How the Afghan Friends Network is Opening Doors
For an uplifting read, check out this blog post highlighting the eagerness students have for education in Afghanistan and a…
Discussing the Bacha Posh on Wisconsin Public Radio
Here’s the audio to my hour long chat with Kathleen Dunn of Wisconsin Public Radio from June 1st, 2015. I…
Podcast with Foreign Affairs Unedited
I spoke with Rebecca Chao, deputy web editor of Foreign Affairs, about the bacha posh tradition of Afghanistan, a middle…
Afghanistan’s Female Sons
I recently wrote a piece on the bacha posh custom for Foreign Affairs. The photographs included in the piece are…