Defiant Dreams

The Journey of an Afghan Girl Who Risked Everything for Education

By: Sola Mahfouz, Malaina Kapoor

Narrated by: Ariana Delawari

A searing, deeply personal memoir of a tenacious Afghan girl who educated herself behind closed doors and fought her way to a new life.

“Stories like this inspire me. Seeing the way people like Sola Mahfouz think about the world reinforces my optimism about the future.”―BILL GATES

Sola Mahfouz was born in Kandahar, Afghanistan, in 1996, the year the Taliban took over her country for the first time. They banned television and photographs, presided over brutal public executions, and turned the clock backward on women’s rights, practically imprisoning women within their own homes and forcing them to wear all-concealing burqas. At age eleven, Sola was forced to stop attending school after a group of men threatened to throw acid in her face if she continued. After that she was confined to her home, required to cook and clean and prepare for an arranged marriage. She saw the outside world only a handful of times each year.

As time passed, Sola began to understand that she was condemned to the same existence as millions of women in Afghanistan. Her future was empty. The rest of her life would be controlled entirely by men: fathers and husbands and sons who would never allow her to study, to earn money, or even to dream.

Driven by this devastating realization, Sola began a years-long fight to change the trajectory of her life, deciding that education would be her way out. At age sixteen, without even the basic ability to add or subtract, she began to teach herself math and English in secret. She progressed rapidly. Within just two years she was already studying subjects such as philosophy and physics. Faced with obstacles at every turn, Sola still managed to sneak into Pakistan to take the SAT. In 2016, she escaped to the United States, where she is now a quantum-computing researcher at Tufts University.

An engrossing, dramatic memoir, co-written with young Indian American human rights activist Malaina Kapoor, Defiant Dreams is the story of one girl, but it’s also the untold story of a generation of women brimming with potential and longing for freedom.

©2023 Sola Mahfouz and Malaina Kapoor (P)2023 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Stories like this inspire me. Seeing the way people like Sola Mahfouz think about the world reinforces my optimism about the future.”―Bill Gates, philanthropist, author, and cofounder of Microsoft

“Sola reminds us that the greatest untapped resource around the globe isn’t gold or oil, but the female half of the population. Virginia Woolf wrote that if Shakespeare had had an equally talented sister, she never would have been able to flower—and Sola is Shakespeare’s sister.”―Nicholas Kristof, Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist and author

“Sola embodies the power of individual determination and serves as an inspiration to us all―she is nothing short of incredible. Her story speaks to the limitless potential of millions who have been held back by circumstances beyond their control. Defiant Dreams is a beautifully written reminder of the transformative power of education.”―Sal Khan, founder of Khan Academy

I learned so much from Sola's story!

I knew the very minimum about Afghanistan when I first started listening to this book. It was eyeopening! It was descriptive enough that I felt like I was literally living everything along with the characters. Thank you, Sola, for telling your story!

Amazing Story

Overall gave me a better understanding of Afghanistan and the difficult life there. I’m amazed at the resilience that people can have.

Wow!!!

Sola takes you through a journey of resilience, defiance, and determination. She bravely shares her story in order to shine light on the stories of the many women who are unable to do so for themselves. It’s truly an amazing and inspiring story.

Inspirational True Story

Definitely worth reading!! Fantastic writing. It gives you a close perspective on life in Afghanistan as a women.

Riveting!!

I could not stop listening to this amazing story! A riveting tale of the strength of life and light in the midst of death and darkness. Absolutely incredible! Thank you for sharing your story with us!