Untold Narratives

Untold Narratives appoints Cortina Butler as chair Untold Narratives has appointed Cortina Butler, deputy director of arts at the British Council, as the new chair of its board.

Cortina Butler, deputy director of arts at the British Council, joins Untold Narratives as chair of the board of directors.

www.thebookseller.com/news/untold-...

We’re hiring an Editorial and Partnerships Manager to join our team in London (hybrid). Learn more: bit.ly/47PDRhA

Today marks four years since the Taliban re-took Kabul. It is also one year since the publication of My Dear Kabul (Coronet Books, 2024). Here’s a sample of how Afghan women writers described the events of that day and its aftermath. Buy the book: lnk.to/MyDearKabul

The Bagri Samaya series celebrates and amplifies women’s voices The Bagri Foundation’s series, A Woman Hums: Women, Voice, Creativity, brings together women curators, artists, filmmakers and writers from across Asia and its diaspora.

The Bagri Foundation’s series, A Woman Hums: Women, Voice, Creativity, brings together women curators, artists, filmmakers and writers from across Asia and its diaspora.
www.stirworld.com/see-news-the...

We’re hiring a Communications Manager to join our team in London (hybrid). Learn more: untold-narratives.org/opp.../commu...

We’re hiring a Finance and Office Co-ordinator to join our team in London (hybrid), one day a week. Learn more:
untold-narratives.org/.../finance-...

My Pen Is the Wing of a Bird, New Fiction by Afghan Women (MacLehosePress, 2022) has been published in South Korea by Pacho Publishing. Buy the English edition: bit.ly/4f12NUY

In Reading, We Resist In Paranda, everyday activities like reading symbolize protest and resistance in homes, alleyways, and gatherings.

In Reading, We Resist, by Paranda writer Marie Bamyani, was published by The Markaz Review @markaz-review.bsky.social this month. Marie talks about the importance of the Paranda book club, where Afghan women writers select and discuss a variety of books. themarkaz.org/in-reading-w...

A Chapan the Height of Noorjan - Words Without Borders In Zaheda’s story, a boy’s playful defiance collides with the weight of war, leaving a family forever changed.

On 7 July, @wwborders.bsky.social published A Chapan the Height of Noorjan, a short story by Paranda writer Zaheda, translated from Dari by Abdul Bacet. In this piece, a boy’s playful defiance collides with the weight of war, leaving a family forever changed.
wordswithoutborders.org/read/article...

Vacancy: Campaigns Officer - English PEN

📣 We're recruiting! English PEN is looking for a Campaigns Officer to join the team (full-time, permanent).

Application deadline: 10am BST, Monday 21 July 2025

Apply & share ⤵️
www.englishpen.org/jobs/vacancy...

A flowering bush with the quote “But those days return. Those days before the bombardment. Those days we would be herded toward the mosque, wherever we were in the city, after the Mullah’s ‘Allahu Akbar.’ And even after the prayers, as we left the mosque, they would hit us on the shoulder with a stick and say ‘Go, pray.’” and the text “'A Chapan the Height of Noorjan' by Zaheda, translated from Dari by Abdul Bacet”

Part of a series of writing by Afghan women, this story by Zaheda (tr. Abdul Bacet, produced in collaboration with @untold-narratives.bsky.social ) narrates the US invasion of Afghanistan through the eyes of a young boy. Read it on WWB: wordswithoutborders.org/read/article...

Tongueless Speaker - Words Without Borders A grieving Afghan refugee finds a place of comfort in Tamanna Easar's short story.

Tongueless Speaker, a short story by Paranda writer Tamanna Easar, translated from Dari by Abdul Bacet, was published in @wwborders.bsky.social. The story follows a woman from Afghanistan as she attempts to adjust to her life in exile.
wordswithoutborders.org/read/article...

Off Air with Jane & Fi Fresh from their new Times Radio show Jane Garvey and Fi Glover keep the mics on, grab a cuppa and say what they really think – unencumbered and off air. If you want to contact the show to ask a quest...

Bestselling British author Kate Mosse @katemossewriter.bsky.social joined Jane Garvey & Fi Glover on their radio show, Off Air. Kate talked about her letter exchange with Afghan writer, Parand. Listen below (13 June):
www.thetimes.com/podcasts/off...

The Taliban letters: one woman writes in freedom, the other in fear The bestselling British author Kate Mosse shares her inspiring email exchange with a brave female writer living under Afghanistan’s brutal regime

Read a letter exchange between Paranda writer Parand and best-selling British author @katemossewriter.bsky.social published in The Sunday Times. The writers discuss their craft and the lives of women and girls in Afghanistan.
www.thetimes.com/article/5a3a...

Join Paranda writer Tamanna Easar on 24 June at Exiled Lit Cafe panel ‘Step into my Shoes’, exploring the conflicting sense of self in exile. Get tickets: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/exiled-wri...

An orange scarf floating in the air with the quote “‘No, no, I don’t want to hurt you. I just want to tell you something,’ I said soothingly. Hearing my calm voice, she lowered the stone. I told her that she was wearing my favorite color. She started to laugh, and the laugh was so hysterical that it filled my heart with horror” and the text “'Rebellion' by Farishta Salehi, translated from Pashto by Abdul Bacet”

Developed in partnership with @‌untold-narratives.bsky.social‬ , this story by Farishta Salehi (tr. Abdul Bacet) narrates an unlikely but meaningful friendship between two women. Read it on WWB: wordswithoutborders.org/read/article...

The event is part of Lambeth Readers and Writers festival by and in collaboration with Round Table Books.

My Dear Kabul: A Year in the Life of an Afghan Women's Writing Group Twenty-one women writers in Afghanistan shared the day-to-day reality of life after the Taliban retook Afghanistan.

Join us at Brixton Library on 2 June to hear My Dear Kabul (Coronet, 2024) contributor Batool Haidari, co-translator Dr Negeen Kargar, and one of the book’s editors, Sunila Galappatti, talking about this collective diary by Afghan women writers. www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/my-dear-ka...

We are recruiting:

Programmes and Partnerships Manager London £29-30K, (FT/0.8) - to ensure the programme is delivered at a high level to existing and new schools.

Partnerships Officer £27-28K (PT, 0.6) - to research funders and schools.

Both roles close 27 May 2025.

firststory.org.uk/vacancies/

Heart Lamp: Selected Stories | And Other Stories In the twelve stories of Heart Lamp, Banu Mushtaq exquisitely captures the everyday lives of women and girls in Muslim communities in southern India. Published originally in the Kannada language betwe...

Heart Lamp is a short-story collection, originally written in Kannada language, translated into English by Deepa Bhasthi. The twelve stories depict the everyday lives of women and girls in Muslim communities in southern India. www.andotherstories.org/heart-lamp-s...

With the International Booker Prize announcement on 20 May, we’re reading the shortlisted Heart Lamp (@andotherstories.bsky.social , 2025) by Banu Mushtaq.

"You can make noise in libraries and that noise can be really, rather wonderful,” Edmund de Waal said.

The speakers highlighted the importance of libraries in different parts of the world, with artist and writer Edmund de Waal talking about a library of sanctuary in the US, a library of translation in SE Asia, and a library of play and clay in the UK.

Knowledge without borders Today marks the launch of our new international report Knowledge without borders: How we made a difference with our global partners in 2023/24 (PDF, 1.4mb). We hear from Marcie Hopkins, Director of In...

We enjoyed the @britishlibrary.bsky.social launch of Knowledge Without Borders – a report on the library’s work with its global partners. blogs.bl.uk/living-knowl...

Running on Time, a non-fiction piece by Paranda writer Nooria Fakhree Aryan, was published in Exiled Ink Magazine. Nooria’s story follows one day of her life in exile in Germany, in which she explores her relationship with time. Read (p39): www.exiledwriters.co.uk/wp-content/u...

نهمین نمایشگاه کتاب تهران، بدون سانسور 9th Uncensored Book Fair - 9e Salon du livre NON-Censuré

Tehran Book Fair Uncensored showcases a wide variety of books censored inside Iran, featuring Persian-language publishers Nogaam Books, aasoo, and more. The bookfair runs across Europe, and the US from 25 April to 13 June. Check the dates in your location: uncensoredbookcom.wordpress.com

Afghan Women's Words: My Dear Kabul

My Dear Kabul (Coronet Books, 2024) contributor Rana Zurmaty will speak at Sydney Writers Festival on 22 May. The event is fully booked, but you can join the waiting list.
www.swf.org.au/program/seas...

My Dear Kabul Go to My Dear Kabul.

Buy My Dear Kabul: lnk.to/MyDearKabul

“...these women are not passive victims; they are brilliant, creative, intelligent, and resilient, and through their words, they gently urge us to become witnesses, too – not to look away.” – Elif Shafak about My Dear Kabul

Elif Shafak: The five emotional books that have shaped me The author shares the powerful reads that have inspired her writing and left a lasting imprint on her heart

My Dear Kabul (Coronet Books, 2024) was highlighted by Elif Shafak, Turkish-British novelist and essayist, as one of the five reads that have inspired her writing.
inews.co.uk/culture/book...