When the US pulled out of Afghanistan in 2021 after 20 years, the Taliban instantly reverted back to the old ways of submission, oppression and tyrannical rule. Women were no longer allowed to go to school/college or work and became their husband’s property.
Within those 20 years society had changed, women had gained more independence and rights especially the women that worked their way into the legal/court system to become judges. They were able to challenge corruption, sentence husbands for killing wives marrying and raping underage girls and educate women on their rights.

When the Taliban took over, they rescued and released these men that were imprisoned and went seeking vengeance for these wrongful imprisonments, as they saw it. This is a story about those female judges who fleed for their lives to freedom and how they started to rebuild their lives with the help of fellow female judges across the world; from overcoming the bureaucracy of visas, asylum status and citizenship, learning new languages and ultimately realising that they may have to retrain due to the typical career trajectory of a judge in other countries.

I was worried at the start about the writing style and thought it was going to romanticise this story, but no it shares the struggles, reality and survivor guilt of these families and the people they left behind. This was a story I was unfortunately too privileged to have thought about and I thank NetGalley, The New Press and Karen Bartlett for sharing this with me. Escape from Kabul is out Aug 5th

This book gave me new insight into some aspects of what it meant to be a woman in Afganistan before, during and after the Taliban regime, and the efforts that it took to flee when the international community withdrew its forces in 2021. I learned a lot about the history of Afganistan through the 20th century (I hadn't realized that the Taliban occupation had only begun in the 90's, and that prior to that women had had so much more freedom than under the Taliban) as well as what the life was like for people, especially women and girls under the taliban regime. Growing up in the shadow of 9/11 I had made many assumptions about life in Afganistan for women that I learned were not exactly true.

The stories of the women judges as they struggled to leave Afganistan as the Taliban took over again were especially interesting, and hearing about how they settled into their new lives in western countries. Knowing there are still so many women, even judges, that are still in Afganistan, and that the rights and liberties they had fought so hard for are now gone is heartbreaking, and although these women and their families were able to get out, they are having to start all over again in new lands where the culture and language are unknown is also sad.

This book gives a voice to Afghan women judges. It tells their story trough multiple taliban occupations and trough many troubles faced. It's inspiering to see the resilience of these women in the face of discrimination and challenge.
The book gives insight in the fear and uncertanty faced during the Taliban's march and occupation of Kabul in 2021 and all the work that was put into getting as many gemale judges out of the country alive.
The timeline of the book jums back and forth in the years to tell stories of the women. Sometimes this is a little confusing. Other than that it's a well written book.

“When we came to the U.S., we saw that women were independent, and that a woman judge in the U.S. could have a good income. Back in Afghanistan, the men were very prejudiced against women, and especially against women judges. Women judges made very little money; in those early days, we had a very hard life and could hardly make ends meet. Not only were the women judges in the U.S. financially independent, they were powerful, too. That surprised us.”

This is a fascinating look at the terrifying escape of Afghan women judges who fled the Taliban. The author chronicles their bumpy journey in a country full of injustice, telling how their influence fluctuated each time the Taliban took power. For a few years, these women (and their families) would live in the shadows, banned from practicing law and in fear of retribution from both the Taliban and former clients. When the Taliban rule was replaced, they became professional pioneers and encouraged women to advocate for their rights. It was a see-saw career for many.

The author tells of the disappointment in learning that there was no plan for these women judges to be evacuated; they felt betrayed and abandoned, watching many who’d supported the U.S. being airlifted to safety. Thankfully, female judges from around the world worked to ensure their safety and escape. All but 40 of the almost 300 judges have been evacuated.

I can’t imagine the weight of injustice, nor how I could continue to fight for my dreams in such conditions. When my life is endangered simply for standing up for what’s right, I hope I am as courageous as these women. While this was an interesting read, the flow was interrupted by chapters on influential Afghan women judges. While this is still important content, I wonder if reorganizing the format would ease the flow?

I was gifted this copy and was under no obligation to provide a review.

This was a powerfull pull.
Strong voice and narrative.
The characters had their importance.
The pace was a little awkward for me but overall a very good read

3⭐️ This is an immensely important topic and I am so grateful to Karen Bartlett for giving a voice to these powerful women and their stories. I think the content is something everyone should read because so few people know the struggles of women in countries other than their own. In the type of news cycle we have in Western countries, people move on too quickly from serious issues like these.

My only issue with this book is that the writing style seemed sort of jilted to me. We were brought back and forth in time to learn other people’s perspectives, which I think is important. But to me, it made the book feel a bit disjointed and made it more difficult to keep track of everything. I think that this is likely just personal preference and many people won’t find that this interferes with their reading of the book! And overall, I am glad I read this book. Getting the chance to learn these women’s stories is valuable to me.

Thank you to NetGalley, The New Press, and Karen Bartlett for the opportunity to read this ARC!

*review posted on goodreads*