matthew s. friedman

Set in the era when Afghanistan was at war, what would happen if a traditional Afghan girl – someone who understood, internalized, and accepted her culture’s strict social norms and values – were to be given a taste of true freedom following a terrible earthquake that erased her memory?  What if, for a time, she was able to experience love, life and liberty -- unconstrained, unencumbered -- the way a man might?  And what if she was then forced to make a choice between these two extremes after regaining her memory – either accepting a woman’s expected role in society or seeking to maintain that sense of self-determination and free will once again?  What would she do?   Afghan Girl explores these questions through the eyes of Nadia, a fifteen-year-old girl from rural Afghanistan who is faced with this reality.