The book's hard-cover title, However Tall the Mountain, draws its
name from the old Afghan proverb, "However tall the mountain, there is
always a road." It tells the stories of these eight young women, as well
as of Ayub herself, and how they found strength in themselves, as well
as each other, through teamwork, revolutionizing the role of women
through what some would see as the small act of playing soccer.
Ayub says that by playing soccer in Afghanistan, the young
women were "not only pushing against years of cultural barriers that
girls face on a daily basis, but also, pushing against the cultural norm
for the sport itself in Afghanistan and redefining the role of women
within that sports arena."
Ayub says she never intended to write a book about her
experience until she was approached by a representative of the
publisher, Hyperion.
"The initial part of the process included a trip to
Afghanistan to conduct in-depth interviews with the girls, as well as
their families," Ayub said. Her work on the book began in 2006, and the
book was published in August 2009.
"That to me was the most intriguing and important part of the
process. Although I knew the general background of each girl, it was
interesting to hear them talk about their lives in greater detail," she
said.
One obstacle Ayub faced when writing the book was that the
time period of her writing happened to coincide with the beginning of
graduate school at UD, which Ayub started in the fall of 2007. "Managing
school and the book at the same time posed both advantages and
disadvantages advantages in that writing the book provided me with a
varied distraction from classwork, and it was a disadvantage at times in
that a few of the book deadlines coincided with finals week," she said.
In writing the book, Ayub said she wanted to show a side of
her native country that she feels is rarely portrayed in the media. Ayub
said she believes that it is "vitally important as an Afghan-American
to contribute to the knowledge and conversations about Afghanistan, as
well as to help broaden the understanding of life on the ground in
Afghanistan for those who live it on a daily basis.
"It was my intention to not only broaden the understanding of
the country, but also to humanize the people. To show that there is a
deeper world beyond the media images and sound bites that most Americans
come in contact with, and while part of the life in the country does
include facing obstacles, it is also important to share stories of hope
and triumph."
Ayub's book has drawn praise from public figures such as
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Julie Foudy, former captain of the
U.S. National Women's Soccer team, and Khaled Hosseini, the author of
the book Kite Runner.
"Awista Ayub has movingly captured the indomitable spirit of
Afghan women in this chronicle of brave girls who risked persecution and
worse to pursue the dreams of ordinary childhood," Clinton wrote. "In
doing what they love most in life playing soccer the girls become
emblems of the fight for equality and human rights under the Taliban.
Their story reminds us that there is always hope and possibility for a
brighter future even in the wreckage left by war and conflict."
Ayub saw the mountain that blocked Afghan youths from
participating in sports, and by teaching those original eight girls how
to spread the youth sports movement in Afghanistan through soccer, she
found the road to the other side.
