Tears of the Desert

Born into the Zaghawa tribe in the Sudanese desert, Halima Bashir became her village's first qualified doctor at the age of twenty-four. Yet no amount of accomplishment or good fortune could protect her from the encroaching conflict that would consume her homeland. After a particularly brutal attack by the Janjaweek Arab militia in 2004, Bashir, who treated the traumatized victims, could no longer remain quiet. But breaking her silence ignited a horrifying turn of events that would change her life forever. With this extraordinary, award-winning memoir, Bashir reminds us of the human and deeply personal cost of what can seem to be a far-away and unsolvable tragedy. Raw and riveting, Tears of the Desert is a survivor's tale of a conflicted country and a resilient people. It reveals to us the uncompromising spirit of a young woman who refused to be silenced. This is a story of will and determination, and a deeply moving global call to action.