Kabul Beauty School: An American Woman Goes Behind the Veil
From the Hardcover edition.Kabul Beauty School: An American Woman Goes Behind the Veil
- ISBN13: 9780812976731
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
Yet within the small haven of the beauty school, the line between teacher and student quickly blurred as these vibrant women shared with Rodriguez their stories and their hearts: the newlywed who faked her virginity on her wedding night, the twelve-year-old bride sold into marriage to pay her family’s debts, the Taliban member’s wife who pursued her training despite her husband’s constant beatings. Through these and other stories, Rodriguez found the strength to leave her own unhealthy marriage and allow herself to love again, Afghan style.
Product Description
Soon after the fall of the Taliban, in 2001, Deborah Rodriguez went to Afghanistan as part of a group offering humanitarian aid to this war-torn nation. Surrounded by men and women whose skills–as doctors, nurses, and therapists–seemed eminently more practical than her own, Rodriguez, a hairdresser and mother of two from Michigan, despaired of being of any real use. Yet she soon found she had a gift for befriending Afghans, and once her profession became known she was eagerly sought out by Westerners desperate for a good haircut and by Afghan women, who have a long and proud tradition of running their own beauty salons. Thus an idea was born.
With warmth and humor, Rodriguez details the lushness of a seemingly desolate region and reveals the magnificence behind the burqa. Kabul Beauty School is a remarkable tale of an extraordinary community of women who come together and learn the arts of perms, friendship, and freedom.
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Kabul Beauty School: An American Woman Goes Behind the Veil
With the help of corporate and international sponsors, the Kabul Beauty School welcomed its first class in 2003. Well meaning but sometimes brazen, Rodriguez stumbled through language barriers, overstepped cultural customs, and constantly juggled the challenges of a postwar nation even as she learned how to empower her students to become their families’ breadwinners by learning the fundamentals of coloring techniques, haircutting, and makeup.
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Comment by Happy in NJ
I thought the book was interesting and at times funny. I don’t really relate to Debbie but her ability to tell her story was fun to read. I am not the type to dissect a book into pieces but I think this one is worth the read.
Rating: 5 / 5
Comment by Julee Rudolf
You have to hand it to Ms. Rodriguez. If nothing else (besides a wealth of knowledge about the beautician industry), she’s got guts. Leaving her two boys in America in the care of her mother, she takes off to a foreign land to escape her abusive second husband (whom she later divorces) and, more importantly, to improve the lives of Afghani women. She accomplishes her goal, but not before becoming the second (though preferred) wife of an Afghani man and encountering many obstacles along the way. Through her skills as a beautician, and with help from other humanitarians, she makes a difference in the lives of a select number of women who are entrusted to carry on the mission: implementing the practices they learn in the beauty school in their own salons in order to provide much needed income for their families. The stories of most of the women are similar, forced at a young age into marriage with an older man; they suffer the bossiness of their mothers-in-law and mistreatment of their husbands. The premise of a Western working woman’s life in Kabul is refreshing; yet the fact that she speaks little of the local language and often exhibits her boisterous, showy personality puts her at a disadvantage as does her sometimes undiplomatic and culturally insensitive behavior. On the other hand, one can’t but admire her pluck. Kabul Beauty School is a story of friendship, hope, and empowerment for the lives of beautifying women of Kabul. Great companion reads: The Bookseller of Kabul by Ã…sne Seierstad and A Thousand Splendid Sons by Khaled Hosseini.
Rating: 3 / 5
Comment by Carol C. Schwarz
Well written, highly personal story of a wonderfully gregarious woman who tried to help Afghani women become more independent by teaching them hairdressing and how to set up beauty salons. She sounded as if she would make a social success wherever she went and her dedication is admirable.
Rating: 4 / 5
Comment by rk from ny
I loved this book (audiobook, wonderfully read). It is an extraordinary story about an extraordinary woman.
Rating: 5 / 5
Comment by J. Cruz
I enjoyed the book and the story. However, afterwards I could not believe after reading the following http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=10634299 that this author would put these women in risk of their lives. I feel so bad for these women constantly living in fear. I find it strange how Rodriguez claimes that ALL the women misunderstood her in regards to receiving profit of this book. I would not recommend anyone else buying this book due to the simple fact that some real names are used and the women in this story back in Kabul are suffering because of it while Rodriguez is safe in America and says she will never go back due to her OWN husband in Kabul, but basically what? Screw the other women that are stuck in Kabul with their husbands?!
Rating: 5 / 5