The Breadwinner

Story

Parvana, and her family face starvation when her father is arrested and taken away. Under Afghan law, women cannot leave home without male supervision so Parvana disguises herself as a boy to find food. Once outside she sees the horror of living under Taliban law but this is her family’s only chance of survival.

Why we chose it

The first book written for children set in Afghanistan under Taliban rule, The Breadwinner is a story of courage and survival.

Where it came from

In 1997, Deborah Ellis travelled to Pakistan where she interviewed many women in an Afghan refugee camp and one such interview, about a girl disguising herself as a boy, became the basis for the story of The Breadwinner.

Where it went next

In 2017, The Breadwinner was released as an animated film, directed by Nora Twomey with Angelina Jolie as executive producer. It was nominated for Best Animated Feature at the 90^th Academy Awards.

Associated stories

There are three more stories in The Breadwinner series: Parvana’s Journey (2002), Mud City (2003) and My Name is Parvana (2011).

Deborah Ellis is an anti-war activist and many of her books reflect this. They include The Cat At the Wall, Sacred Leaf, Looking for X, No Safe Place, No Ordinary Day, I Am Taxi and Sit.