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Coronet has acquired A Song for Afghanistan, a collective diary collaboration between Untold Narratives and 18 Afghan women writers.
Harriet Poland, editorial director at Coronet, acquired UK and British Commonwealth rights to A Song for Afghanistan in a pre-empt from Amy St Johnston at Aitken Alexander. It will be published in hardback, e-book and audiobook in August 2024.
The publisher describes A Song for Afghanistan as a shared record of the year following the fall of Kabul, a testament to the collective spirit of women living under terror and a vital record of lives under brutality.
Its synopsis reads: “In February 2022, these Afghan women released the acclaimed short story collection, My Pen Is the Wing of a Bird, New Fiction by Afghan Women (MacLehose Press) called ‘powerful, profound and deeply moving’ by Elif Shafak. The work was a celebration of creativity and identity, written by a group of women united in words.
“In August 2021 Kabul fell, and these women continued their WhatsApp group for support, information, and the space to remember and reflect. As they watched cities fall, schools close, families change and freedoms disappear, they shared stories of chaos, protest and flight. As a group, they reflected the scope of female experience; mothers and doctors, students and teachers, those who had lived under the Taliban, and those who couldn’t imagine it. In sharing their stories, they created a place of community and strength in the face of terror.”
Untold Narratives works with writers marginalised by community or conflict. It has been working with this group of Afghan women writers since 2019. This collective diary came out of its Write Afghanistan project.
Lucy Hannah, director of Untold, said: “A Song for Afghanistan is a unique document of a devastating year in which these writers shared stark choices and extraordinary challenges. Their collective conversation will startle those who have never known war and offer solidarity to those who have.”
Poland said: “I was captivated by the first words of this collected diary, a deeply moving record of war and terror, and a beautiful expression of humanity. We believe this book is a timeless expression of women’s lives in extremis, and we’re honoured to publish it.”