Zarifa: A Woman’s Battle in a Man’s World

Afghanistan’s youngest female mayor details her odds-defying ascent in this inspirational memoir. Ghafari notes how “trauma has been passed down with my DNA,” with her maternal grandfather having been killed by a mujahideen militia, and, more recently, her father murdered by the Taliban. After attending Panjab University in India, 26-year-old Ghafari was elected mayor of Maidan Shahr, the capital of a central Afghanistan province, and she details how she brought change to the city during her three-year tenure that ended in June 2021. Having campaigned on the idea that “cities have to be governed from the bottom up,” she developed green spaces for city residents, and her administration funded the building of a waste and recycling facility to combat the city’s sewage problems. She also fired officials who had been taking bribes and survived multiple assassination attempts, but after the Taliban overtook Kabul in August 2021, she fled the country. Frank (“Surviving a terror attack—even two—did not make me special”) and impassioned (“I will keep reminding women that they have a voice, and can raise it”), Ghafari’s narrative spotlights the power of activism. This is a remarkable story of perseverance and resilience. Agent: Kelly Falconer, Asia Literary Agency. (Oct.)