Pearl that Broke Its Shell

In 2005, a group of Afghan actors endeavored to create an unusual dramatic performanceandmdash;one that would bring theater to a region wounded after years of war with the Taliban and offer hope for healing. A Night in the Emperorandrsquo;s Garden is the captivating account of their resulting play and a rich exploration of the regionandrsquo;s culture.

In preparation, for five months, the group tirelessly reworked Shakespeareandrsquo;s Loveandrsquo;s Labourandrsquo;s Lost into their own Dari language while the members brought their own experiences to the interpretation. One actor was a police detective and widow determined to create images of strong women. Another had trained at Kabul University before fleeing to Pakistan as a refugee. A third had played the title role in the acclaimed film Osama, yet was a beggar who could barely read and write. Joined by a French actress who served as director and several other enthusiasts, these actors performed before royalty and street vendors alike for one night amid the ruins of a magnificent garden laid out five centuries earlier by Emperor Babur. For the first time in thirty years, men and women stood on stage together as they worked toward a new era in Afghanistan.

Qais Akbar Omar and Stephen Landrigan, both involved in the production, have captured its exuberance and optimism along with the actorsandrsquo; joys and sorrows in the decade following the play. Revealing a side of Afghanistan largely unknown to outsiders, A Night in the Emperorandrsquo;s Garden tells the magical story of an artistic achievement with universal appeal.

“Nadia Hashimi has written, first and foremost, a tender and beautiful family story. Her always engaging multigenerational tale is a portrait of Afghanistan in all of its perplexing, enigmatic glory, and a mirror into the still ongoing struggles of Afghan women.” Khaled Hosseini, author of < i=""> And the Mountains Echoed <> and < i=""> The Kite Runner <>

“A fascinating look at the unspoken lives of Afghani women, separated by generations and miles, yet achingly similar. This is a story to transport you and make you think.” Shilpi Somaya Gowda, < i=""> New York Times <> bestselling author of < i=""> Secret Daughter <>

“Hashimi weaves together two equally engrossing stories in her epic, spellbinding debut.” Booklist (starred review)

andldquo;Absolutely charmingandmdash;touching, hilariousandmdash;and very different to all the depressing war tomes on Afghanistan.andrdquo;

andldquo;The story is alternately funny, poignant, and inspiring, providing a glimpse into another Afghanistan.andrdquo;

andldquo;A Night in the Emperorandrsquo;s Garden is an illuminating and deeply moving bookandmdash;a startling exploration of Shakespearean mobility, a tribute to the subversive power of the theater, and a poignant account of the tragic dilemmas of contemporary Afghanistan. It is an unforgettable story about courage, artistic ambition, and moral determination in the face of murderous violence.andrdquo;

Afghan-American author Nadia Hashimi's The Pearl That Broke Its Shell tells the entwined stories of two Afghan women in the same family, separated by a century, who find freedom in the tradition of bacha posh--an ancient custom that allows girls to dress and live as boys . . . until they are of marriageable age. Crisscrossing in time, it is a luminous and unforgettable tale of two women, destiny, and identity in Afghanistan.

Afghan-American Nadia Hashimi's literary debut novel is a searing tale of powerlessness, fate, and the freedom to control one's own fate that combines the cultural flavor and emotional resonance of the works of Khaled Hosseini, Jhumpa Lahiri, and Lisa See.

In Kabul, 2007, with a drug-addicted father and no brothers, Rahima and her sisters can only sporadically attend school, and can rarely leave the house. Their only hope lies in the ancient custom of bacha posh, which allows young Rahima to dress and be treated as a boy until she is of marriageable age. As a son, she can attend school, go to the market, and chaperone her older sisters.

But Rahima is not the first in her family to adopt this unusual custom. A century earlier, her great-great grandmother, Shekiba, left orphaned by an epidemic, saved herself and built a new life the same way.

Crisscrossing in time, The Pearl the Broke Its Shell interweaves the tales of these two women separated by a century who share similar destinies. But what will happen once Rahima is of marriageable age? Will Shekiba always live as a man? And if Rahima cannot adapt to life as a bride, how will she survive?

A luminous and unforgettable tale of two women, destiny, and identity in Afghanistan

Kabul, 2007: The Taliban rules the streets. With a drug-addicted father and no brothers, Rahima and her sisters can rarely leave the house or attend school. Their only hope lies in the ancient Afghan custom of bacha posh, which allows young Rahima to dress and be treated as a son until she is of marriageable age. As a boy, she has the kind of freedom that was previously unimaginable . . . freedom that will transform her forever.

But Rahima is not the first in her family to adopt this unusual custom. A century earlier, her great-great-grandmother Shekiba, left orphaned by an epidemic, saved herself and built a new life in the same way—the change took her on a journey from the deprivation of life in a rural village to the opulence of a king's palace in the bustling metropolis of Kabul.

Crisscrossing in time, The Pearl That Broke Its Shell interweaves the stories of these two remarkable women who are separated by a century but share the same courage and dreams.

Qais Akbar Omar is the author of A Fort of Nine Towers, which has been published in over twenty languages, and has written for the New York Times and the Atlantic. A graduate of the creative writing program at Boston University, he is currently a Scholars at Risk fellow at Harvard University.Stephen Landrigan is a playwright and former journalist for the Washington Post and BBC Radio. He lives in Massachusetts, where he tends a small orchard near Boston.