A Fort of Nine Towers An Afghan Family Story

by Omar, Qais Akbar

• ISBN13: 9781250043658
• ISBN10: 1250043654
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2014-04-08
• Publisher: Picador

Summary

Twenty-three years ago—after the Soviets left and before the Taliban came to power—Kabul was a garden where seven-year-old Qais Akbar Omar flew kites from the roof of his grandfather's house. Then came the hollow sounds of rocket fire as the Mujahedin, self-proclaimed holy warriors, took over Afghanistan, and the country erupted in civil war. Omar's family fled, leaving everything behind to take shelter in an old fort. But after a narrow escape from death, his father decided that the family must leave the country.

Yet the journey proved more difficult than anticipated, and in this stunning coming-of-age memoir, Omar offers a moving recollection of these events—a story of daily hardships, relieved by moments of joy and immense beauty. Inflected with folktales and steeped in poetry, A Fort of Nine Towers is a life-affirming triumph.

Author Biography

Qais Akbar Omar (whose first name is pronounced "Kice") manages his family’s carpet business and writes books. In 2007, he was a visiting scholar at the University of Colorado. He has studied business at Brandeis University and now lives in Boston, where he is pursuing an MFA in creative writing at Boston University. Omar has lectured on Afghan carpets in Afghanistan, Europe, and the United States. He is the coauthor, with Stephen Landrigan, of Shakespeare in Kabul.