What a fascinating, thought-provoking book. If you are interested in gender roles, Afghanistan, and/or stories about strong girls you can't miss this one. Definitely one of my favorite books of the year. ( )

Obayda’s family moved to a rural village after a Kabul bomb blast took her father’s leg and the family’s livelihood; in a bid to attract good fortune, relatives persuade her mother to transform Obayda, 10, youngest of four daughters, into a bacha posh: a boy.

Her mother adopts this traditional, underground practice reluctantly. Obayda’s apprehensive but wants to help: her father was injured getting her medicine. Transformed by a haircut, boy attire, and new name—Obayd—she joins the boys’ class at school. After a rocky start, she makes friends and discovers the joys of wearing pants; exempted from chores, she plays and climbs trees. Catapulted from youngest daughter to only son, she’s served meat while her sisters get sauce and vegetables. Freedom’s intoxicating, but at puberty she’ll become a girl again—this time for good. Rahima, the central character of the Afghan-American author’s similarly themed novel for adults, The Pearl that Broke Its Shell (2014), returns here. Given vast inequities between the sexes, bacha posh (variants exist elsewhere, too) injects cultural flexibility. Yet despite its utility (a pre-pubescent son can work, helping to support the family; a girl cannot), bacha posh may leave psychological and emotional scars, issues Hashimi touches on gently.

Well-told through appealing characters, this tale sheds light from a unique cultural perspective on the link between vastly different, rigidly enforced roles for boys and girls and gender-identity issues. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)

-Kirkus Review

A fairly straightforward story about an Afghani girl who becomes a boy to help her family and discovers joy in the freedom her new role offers. Deals with gender in a very gentle way. ( )

A special thank you to Edelweiss and HarperCollins Canada for an ARC in an exchange for an honest review.

Nadia Hashimi's first YA novel is a coming-of-age story with a twist. Set in modern-day Afghanistan, we meet Obayda, the youngest girl of four sisters, who becomes a bacha posh (a preteen girl dressed as a boy) to bring her family luck.

Obayda, now Obayd, must live as though she were a boy however, is struggling as he straddles both worlds until he meets another bacha posh, Rahim. Together they try to find a way to make their transformations stick so that they can enjoy their newfound freedoms.

Hashimi explores the bacha posh in The Pearl That Broke Its Shell, and crosses over the character of Rahima/Rahim. She was interested in this part of Afghanistan's past after reading an article about how a king would use women, dressed as men, to guard his harem (trust no man!). These women are generations apart, being dressed as boys in a country where being female is a consequence.

This book is a wonderful story of tenacity, friendship, and survival set against a backdrop of harsh realities. Give it a read, you will not be disappointed. ( )

Narrated by Ariana Delawari. After Obayda's father loses his leg in a car bombing, the family's fortunes suffer and they move from Kabul to her father's childhood village. To bring luck to the family with all daughters, 10-year-old Obayda dresses as a boy, or a bacha posh. She struggles with her new role until she meets Rahim (sp?) who is also a bacha posh. From strong, confident Rahim, Obayd (her boy's name) learns how to act, think, and be like a boy. It's a freeing experience compared to the sheltered existence of girls but how much longer can it last? Rahim is always referred to as "he" and "him," including by Obayd. Although her lack of differentiation in voices leads to occasional confusion, Delawari conveys the drama, frustration and joys of Obayda's journey as a boy. ( )