One More Mountain by Deborah Ellis

Title: One More Mountain

Author: Deborah Ellis

Genre: Fiction

Publisher: Allen and Unwin

Published: 1^st November 2022

Format: Paperback

Pages: 256

Price: $16.99

Synopsis: From the master storyteller of the bestselling Parvana books comes a timely new novel set in contemporary Afghanistan, featuring Parvana and Shauzia continuing their mission to protect women and girls from their dire reality under the rules re-imposed by the Taliban.

In Kabul, 15-year-old Damsa runs away to avoid being forced into marriage by her family. She is helped by Shauzia who takes her to her friend Parvana’s Green Valley school.

It has been twenty years since Parvana and Shauzia had to disguise themselves as boys to support their families. And when the Taliban were defeated in 2001, they began to rebuild their lives. But everything changed in 2021 when the Taliban rose to power again and the restrictions they imposed had a devastating impact on women and girls and their hard-won freedoms.

With little warning, Kabul airport is shut down and danger is everywhere. And when the Taliban comes to Green Valley, Parvana and Shauzia’s community face new dangers from an old enemy as Afghanistan is once again under siege.

A hauntingly compelling story of courage, heartbreak and resilience.

~*~

When fifteen-year-old Damsa runs away from an arranged marriage, she arrives at Green Valley, a sanctuary run by Shauzia and Parvana, who have spent their lives defying the Taliban, and rebuilding their families after the Taliban was defeated. Yet not they must do what they can to defy the Taliban again, and this time, Parvana’s son is caught up in an incident as he tries to escape the country. Parvana and the other girls must disguise themselves as boys to evade capture by the Taliban as they run away to safety. Green Valley is under threat, and the airport has been shut down. Nobody is safe, and Afghanistan is at risk again. And nobody is safe.

Whilst this is the fifth book in the Parvana series, it is the first time I have heard of this author, and to my knowledge, there only appear to be two available in Australia. Even so, I felt like I was still able to follow what was going on. Maybe that had something to do with the fact that the events it referenced from 2001 were ones that happened during my lifetime, and ones that I could recall hearing about and reading about in the news. The background is given subtly for younger readers in a way that suits the readership and story. It is both historical for readers who may not have been alive in 2001, but contemporary for those who were and who have grown up and matured in the years since 2001 and the attacks on New York in September of that year. Whilst these events are not referenced, for those who know about them or remember them, who remember that day, they are definitely there in the background, giving context to the story, and an understanding of the world that these characters live in yet are also so far away from.

At the heart of this novel, is a story about freedom and education, and the basic right to live a life free from fear and terror – which is the world that Parvana, Damsa, and everyone else in the novel is living in. It is their reality, and one that readers in Western countries might not be familiar with or be able to imagine happening in their own lives. Yet it is books like this that can open the world up to us – and give us a different perspective about the world and the people who live in the world with us, even if they are in very different countries and cultures to us. We are immersed in the story as it flits between Parvana and Rafi, but at times I did want a little bit more connecting some of the sections – I wanted to see Parvana and Rafi reunite – it was as though there was something building up to that, and then it didn’t happen. There was something about the style of the way the story was written though that also worked for the plot – maybe leaving things like the reunion to the imagination was more powerful in a way.

The story felt finished and unfinished – finished because we knew the fate of the characters, yet unfinished because I was wondering what would happen next. What might happen next – yet as this story takes place around 2021-2022, it is possible that there may not be more, as it is based around a volatile situation where nobody knows what is going to happen. Ans that might be what makes this story so powerful.