The Other Side of the Sky: Summary and book reviews of The Other Side of the Sky by Farah Ahmedi, plus links to an excerpt from The Other Side of the Sky and a biography of Farah Ahmedi.
The Other Side of the Sky A Memoir
by Farah Ahmedi, Tamim Ansary
Hardcover: Apr 2005,
256 pages.
Paperback: Jun 2006,
256 pages.
"I was late to school, and that's all I could think about. I started across the field. And then suddenly a fire flashed in my face and the earth seemed to move beneath my feet. I remember a shower of soil and then nothing. I woke up on the ground, surrounded by a crowd, men and boys...no women. They were all staring down at me with huge eyes. Their lips were moving, but I could hear no voices. All I heard was a loud ringing in my ears."
Farah Ahmedi is born into the world just as the war between the mujahideen and the Soviets reaches its peak in Afghanistan. Bombs are falling all over her country, and her native Kabul is swelling with hundreds of thousands of people looking for homes and jobs. The sounds of gunfire and fighter planes are as normal to Farah as the sounds of traffic or children playing are to a schoolgirl in America. When Farah steps on a land mine on her way to school, her world becomes much smaller than the dreams and hopes in her heart. She begins to learn--slowly--that ordinary people, often strangers, have immense power to save lives and restore hope.
The Story of My Life: An Afghan Girl on the Other Side of the Sky recounts an epic journey. It deftly interweaves a childhood in Afghanistan, where the classrooms are naked chambers with only chalkboards on the walls and are filled with more students than seats (and no books), with an American adolescence, where teenagers struggle to decide whether to try out for school plays, whom to take to the homecoming dance, and where to go to college. In Kabul, they cancel school because of rockets and bombings; in Chicago, Farah might have a snow day. In Kabul, a schoolgirl wears a black dress and a white headscarf; in America, girls need the right jeans and trendy tops.
Thanks to a number of good people who crossed her path at critical moments, Farah is thriving. She may be haunted by her past, but she is no longer enslaved by it. She is actively enjoying the realization of her childhood dreams; she's an Afghan American, free to learn, work, support herself, and choose her own path. She'll graduate from high school soon and is being recruited by some of the best colleges in the world.
Farah is living proof that not only can the human heart endure, it can also thrive. Even in war, there are miracles. Even when limbs are amputated, we are whole. Even in refugee camps, dreams come true. Even when fathers and siblings die young, there is love. The Story of My Life is our new great American memoir.
Published in hardcover as The Story of My Life: An Afghan Girl on the Other Side of the Sky.
-James McBride, author of The Color of Water and Miracle at St. Anna
Inspiring....A wonderful story.
Peter Castro, executive editor of People magazine
A great twenty-first century American immigrant story. The Story of My Life is the modern American dream, and it's rich with details of the Taliban and Afghanistan
Mary Karr, author of The Liar's Club and Cherry
Very compelling....Here you have a girl, a child, who suffered her own disability, [and] the loss of her family and her homeland. She's taking care of her aging mother and adapting to this new culture, and she's a bright, shining light in the world....Very moving.
Mary Higgins Clark, author of thirty-two worldwide bestsellers
The Story of My Life has that wonderful quality of survival and is most compelling. Seeing Afghanistan from the eyes of this girl provides a deep, rich look that we haven't seen before.
Recent Reader Reviews
Rated of 5
by GMA Wonderful I thought this book was wonderful. I had to read it for school and normaly I hate memoirs (and books people choose out for me) but i have to say the journey farah went through is amazing, I don't think I could ever go through what she did.
Rated of 5
by oprah Good at some parts bad at others, but mostly wrong The other side of the sky portrays a wrong image and bases false information regarding the Muslim way of life and its practice. With all respect, Farah is oblivious of the politics in her country and bases her opinions on her own experience as a... Read More
Rated of 5
by idette inspiring This book was inspiring because it inspired many people to move on to reaching their biggest goal from something very important they lost.This is also amazing because of all what she went through throughout her life to reach her goal.I would... Read More
Rated of 5
by Louise J. An Inspirational Memoir for Everyone! Farah was seven-years-old and had overslept one morning. Worried that she was late for school she decided to take a short cut through a field, saving her two or three minutes but little did Farah know that decision would turn out to be the worst... Read More
Rated of 5
by nahida hmmmm It was a good book.... I used to read fiction in my Farsi language... this book was my first English book that I had to read just for school... I started forcefully but I really enjoyed reading it.... I am from her country but I had never been in... Read More
Rated of 5
by Christina Mao The Most Heartwarming story of a Girl from Pakistan Farah is not only the most amazing girl I've ever read about but the bravest. She has this deep knowledge and grace. Coming from a middle-class deep-religion community, moving to a rich Germany, then back, then ending up in the U.S would seem to... Read More
When asked
whether the experience of
winning the contest has made her
want to be a writer Farah
replied, "I'll be happy
to write books. I would also be
happy to be in medicine, working
with prosthetics. But I have to
find out how smart I am. I also
like technology, working with
computers. My career could go in
different directions."
When asked how it feels to be in
America she says, "It feels
great to be in America .... I'm
safe here, no war. I like the
love I have here, and the
system. I like shopping. It is
so clean here. People take care
of nature and things are in
control—the streets, traffic
lights. It is peaceful . . .
safe. "
At once an incredible chronicle of thirty years of Afghan history and a deeply moving story of family, friendship, faith, and the salvation to be found in love.
A passionate journey through a landscape charged with the supernatural and scarred by political violence, in a novel that bears witness to the traditions, suffering, and wisdom of an entire people.
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The first biography of Clarence Birdseye, the eccentric genius inventor whose fast-freezing process revolutionized the food industry and American agriculture.
BookExpo America will broadcast live author appearances for the first time(May 24 2012) For the first time, BookExpo America is making author appearances at the show available for viewing online live or on demand, via Livestream. It is...
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-James McBride, author of The Color of Water and Miracle at St. Anna
of 5
by GMA
of 5
by oprah
of 5
by idette
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