My Pen Is the Wing of a Bird: New Fiction by Afghan Women

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I like that there are stories in the collection that depicted violent men in the community, just as much as there are stories where male characters loved and respected their women folks dearly. Running through several stories is a sense of loneliness, how a war situation adds another dimension to endemic volatility under Taliban rule, it really affects individuals. How solace can be found in pets and animal connections, and how disappearing into imagination is a relief from the world around. Blossom is another story where readers see this unwavering courage on display through a young schoolgirl called Nekbakht. Students of Sayed ul-Shuhada high school who died in a school bombing inspired this story. This book is more than just a literary project....For most of these writers, even finding the space and peace of mind to write is a daily struggle. Literature is resilience, a release.Most of the stories [in The Pen is the Wing of a Bird] especially squash that 'in-need-of-saving' tag that Afghan women have had to deal with for so long" For those reading in English, the original phrase offers a glimpse of a new and disturbing way of thinking about women. The anthology’s title is explained in the epigraph: “My pen is the wing of a bird; it will tell you those thoughts we are not allowed to think, those dreams we are not allowed to dream.” This was written by Batool Haidari, who contributed two stories, both originally in Dari. “I Don’t Have the Flying Wings” was translated by Parwana Fayyaz, who also co-translated, with Zubair Popalzai, “Kurshid Khanum, Rise and Shine”. As the world watched the devastating scenes at Kabul airport last August, our focus at Untold shifted swiftly from creativity to safety, working to support both those writers who wanted to leave, and those who wished to – or had to – remain. At the time, someone asked me: “Why would people carry on writing at a time like this?” And the answer is that, if you are a writer, that is what you do. Stories help us make sense of our world, particularly in the face of uncertainty and fear. As one of the writers said: “All we can do is give each other moral support. Sharing our writing is one way of doing that. War won’t take our creativity away.”

Most of the stories especially squash that 'in-need-of-saving' tag that Afghan women have had to deal with for so long. At this point, readers would expect the story to examine how misogyny affects even the rudimentary aspects of women’s lives – and rightfully so. However, upon arriving from his trip, the husband brings home a new pair of trainers, especially for the daughter.The following extract is the story "The Most Beautiful Lips in the World" by Elahe Hosseini, translated from the Dari by Dr Negeen Kargar. UNTOLDhas been supporting them to develop their work, to write the stories they want to write, in their own words. These exciting contemporary voices from the country's two main linguistic groups (Pashto and Dari) explore a wide range of issues - family, work, tradition, sexuality, friendship, gender identity and real-life events - through original, vibrant, and tonally varied short fiction. In “D is for Daud” by Anahita Gharib Nawaz (translated from the Dari by Zubair Popalzai), a school teacher risks everything to help a young boy whose sister is being abused by her husband.