I Am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced
A Memoir
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4.5 • 169 Ratings
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- $8.99
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
“I’m a simple village girl who has always obeyed the orders of my father and brothers. Since forever, I have learned to say yes to everything. Today I have decided to say no.”
Nujood Ali's childhood came to an abrupt end in 2008 when her father arranged for her to be married to a man three times her age. With harrowing directness, Nujood tells of abuse at her husband's hands and of her daring escape. With the help of local advocates and the press, Nujood obtained her freedom—an extraordinary achievement in Yemen, where almost half of all girls are married under the legal age. Nujood's courageous defiance of both Yemeni customs and her own family has inspired other young girls in the Middle East to challenge their marriages.
Hers is an unforgettable story of tragedy, triumph, and courage.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Headlines traveled around the globe in the spring of 2008 when the barely 10-year-old Nujood Ali found the courage to knock on the courtroom door ; she had come seeking a divorce from the sexually abusive and violent 30-ish man, a marriage arranged by her father. French journalist Minoui renders Ali's life from the young child's perspective without sensationalism, as respectful of Ali's faith as affected by her courage. Through her unwavering focus on Ali's young life and her big victory, on her pre-pubescent innocence and ignorance, the reader is taken inside one poor, recently rural Yemeni household. As Ali's life ( I have always obeyed the orders of my father and brothers ) moves into the public sphere, she discovers (fortunately) the compassionate judges and the dedicated lawyer of a more urbane Yemen. Simple and straightforward in its telling, this is an informative and thoroughly engaging narrative making more painful a disquieting sense as the book ends that Ali's big victory offers the promise of change to other young girls but no true restoration of her girlhood; she's about 12 now.
Customer Reviews
Loved it
Great read, very inspiring and heroic tale of a young girls journey. Fast paced it will keep you wanting to turn the pages till it's finished.
Nujood Ali
Fantastic little book. Conveys real plight of little girls in 3rd World countries. Thanks to Nujood Ali.
I am Nujood, age 10 and Divorced
This book is quite an amazing true story of a young girl that shows tremendous courage to escape her horrors. Nujood is a modern day heroine that is a blessing and an inspiration to probably thousands of young Muslim girls and many more women that are oppressed and abused daily in Yemen and other countries. God bless you Nujood!