What would you tell the author or any of these women?

What would you tell the author or any of these women? They would love to hear from you.
The author also invites you to visit http://www.bachaposh.com.
And for more about women in Afghanistan, you may be interested in the Afghan Women's Writing Project: http://awwproject.org

Update July 24:
Jenny Nordberg just sent this message:
Thank you so much for reading my book and the stories of women and girls in Afghanistan I have tried to tell. I read all messages here and am deeply grateful and humbled by your kind reviews and thoughts expressed. It means a lot also to the brave women who decided to share confidences with me in the hopes it would reach those outside Afghanistan.
Warm regards from Jenny

First, I want to thank Jenny Nordberg for the fantastic job she did in researching this topic. I never knew this was happening in the world. With all I have read about our aid to Afghanistan, especially for women: I had not heard of bacha posh. The book was a true education.
To the women, I can only say, be true to who you are. I know this seems impossible under their living conditions.

I would say "BRAVO" both for the families who hoped to ease life for their daughters in this way and to the author for writing this tremendous book. I gulped it down soon after it arrived at my home and was astonished at the contents. The story it tells of this practice is not only new to me, but the writing is so well done! Congratulations. I'm looking forward to checking out the balance of the questions and comments here, but just wanted an opportunity to say how impressed I am by this volume.

The author did a very good job of getting into the hearts and minds of these oppressed women. She seemed to have an empathy with them so that they opened up to her. I think this book would be great for book clubs.

To the women I would say don't give up hope for the future. Afghanistan is not a closed country like North Korea, and the West has been influencing its culture through music, movies, fashion etc. We can hope that some of that influence would eventually mean greater freedom for women.

To the author: thank you for writing such a well researched, important book. I was drawn in from the first page. The respect you showed for the women and their families is a model for researchers.

To the women: I admire your courage. I stand in awe of your ability to keep moving toward your goals each day despite all the difficulties. May life get easier for you. May you feel loved and supported.

High five to the author...what a story and well documented...I was unaware of the practice of bacha posh.At first I thought that this was a possible way to increase a woman's rights, and a possibility for change...But I finished the book feeling my hope ebbing away for the women of Afghanistan.

As others have said Jenny Nordberg deserves congrats on taking on this project and spending so much time with these women and girls, learning about their situations and revealing it to the world through this book. Last summer I read The Pearl That Broke Its Shell by Nadia Hashimi which was a novelized story of a young girl who was made a bacha posh with a parallel story of an ancestor who was a famous bacha posh. This was my first introduction to this practice so when I got this book and read the factual story I was astonished that so much of the novel was based on truth and that the practice was so widespread. Jenny gives us enough information from so many interviews to help us see the true reasons behind the continuing culture of the bacha posh and for the young women involved we see both the advantages and disadvantages. To the women of Afghanistan, I say bravo for their courage in undertaking this method of gaining freedom for women and hope that through their persistence they can achieve some measure of more freedom and rights for women. At least more of the western world will be aware of their plight through Jenny Nordberg's efforts and their willingness to share their stories.

To Jenny Nordberg, I say congratulations and thank you for writing such a moving and beautiful story. To think that girls and women in so many cultures are thought of as "less than" is simply unbelievable in this day and age. I can't imagine the confusion and complications when whese girls come of age and then must revert to female.

This life is sad and unfathomable. What the heck is it about man-made religions ( and they all are) that require the degradation of women? Kudos to the author...this book opens our eyes to the deplorable conditions of others. We just want to scoop our sisters up and give them some peace.

Thank you for bringing the practice of bacha posh to our attention in such a well written, well organized, and easy to read book. I was also drawn in to the various stories of young and old. To the women I would say stay strong. I will be recommending it to my book club as it is important to spread the word about what is happening to females in other countries.

I would tell these women and their families that my admiration for their courage and their foray into independence puts me in awe. I commend them and send prayers and good wishes for their safety and for a nation where such actions are no longer necessary for women to have the same rights and freedoms as their fathers and brothers.

I would thank the author for writing such a great book! She did a great job in researching and writing this fantastic story. And to the women of the book I would like to say I admire their bravery and I hope they can live the life they want.

The women are amazingly strong. Stay strong and stay safe.

Please continue writing books like this about women around the world. Exposing these practices is an important first step toward change.

Ms. Nordberg, you have created not only a work of art, but one of historical significance and an outstanding teaching tool. I read the book when I first received it and chaffed at the bit waiting for the discussion time to arrive. I admire your painstaking research for the book and the courage of those who agreed to be a part of that process. But, not only are your tenacity and skill in searching out the "story," but your skill at putting it all together in a way that is so very readable, I hope to read future writings of yours. To the women/girls in the book I would say how much I admire your courage, your adaptability and your willingness to share your stories. I shall pray for the days to come, sooner rather than later, when you will be free from birth to be the female figures you deserve to be. To be free to climb those trees, to play soccer, to drive where you want, to be educated and to have a career, whether it be as a stay at home mom or in the outside workforce. Whatever YOU CHOOSE to do. Bravo for doing your part to make those things happen.

I too would like to thank Jenny Nordberg for writing such a fascinating and informative book. It illustrated the indomitable spirit of Afghan women who are determined to experience at least a modicum of freedom and dignity in spite of their male oppressors; their ingenuity is admirable. While their successes were usually short-lived and duplicitous by necessity, my hope is that they will somehow persevere long enough to see real change someday. My appreciation of and gratitude for my inalienable rights and freedoms were strengthened by contrast.

Such an important book! May your efforts "prime our pumps" into action! Phyllis R.

Thank you for giving a voice to these brave Afghan women and for educating us on the practice of bacha posh. Although the hurdles seem insurmountable, I too hope for a future someday where "it may be possible for women everywhere not to be restricted to those roles society deems natural, God-given, or appropriately feminine."

There will be a segment with Jenny Nordberg on PBS "To The Contrary." Check your local PBS listings.

To Jenny: Thank you so much for writing this book. You do the women of Afghanistan a service by calling attention to their plight. I enjoyed getting to "meet" these extraordinary women and wish them happy and safe lives. Is there anything we can do to help them or does it need to come from inside the country?

To Azita: Thank you for sharing your story. I know you are heartbroken at losing your seat in parliament, but please know that you are a pioneer in your country. Future generations of women will learn from you and about you and will have somewhat easier lives because of the choices and the sacrifices you made.

The author has written an eye opening look into a culture that most of us are not familiar with today. We live such "privileged" lives as women in a free society, but this book shows us how very blessed we are to live so openly. The story leaves you thinking about these girls and women long after the book is set down. This is a book that needs to be read slowly, absorbed one chapter at a time. Kudos to the author on doing such thorough research and bringing this story to the world. It needed to be told.