97 pages 3 hours read

Farah Ahmedi, Tamim Ansary

The Other Side of the Sky

Nonfiction | Autobiography / Memoir | Adult | Published in 2005

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Introduction

The Other Side of the Sky

  • Genre: Nonfiction; memoir
  • Originally Published: 2005
  • Reading Level/Interest: College/adult
  • Structure/Length: Prologue, 20 chapters; approx. 249 pages; approx. 4 hours, 41 minutes on audio
  • Central Concern: Farah Ahmedi tells the story of her life in Kabul to Tamim Ansary. She grew up with gunfire and bombs, and she almost dies after stepping on a landmine. The war sends her on a remarkable journey across the mountains and through refugee camps until she reaches America, proof that people can endure hardship and reach safety opportunity.
  • Potential Sensitivity Issues: War violence; injuries; and displacement

Tamim Ansary, Author

  • Bio: Born in 1948 in Kabul, Afghanistan; Afghan-American author and public speaker; attended Reed College in Portland, Oregon; wrote an email in 2001 denouncing the Taliban but warning that a US deployment to the country could start a third world war; moderated the San Francisco Writers Workshop for over two decades
  • Other Works: West of Kabul, East of New York (2003); The Widow’s Husband (2009); Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World Through Islamic Eyes (2009); Games Without Rules: The Often Interrupted History of Afghanistan (2012); The Invention of Yesterday: A 50,000-Year History of Human Culture, Conflict, and Connection (2019)

CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Unit: