I did my book to help other people. People are always struggling and they need help and something to give them courage, so that's why I did it. - Farah Ahmedi, author of… The Other Side of the Sky

Good Morning America Contest How the Book Came to Be In 2005, Good Morning America sponsored a writing contest entitled The Story of My Life. At the time, Farah was 17 years old, had only been in the U.S. for three years, had escaped the turmoil of Afghanistan, had lost many family members to war, and had survived the loss of a leg due to a landmine. After the encouragement of a close friend, she decided to submit her story to the GMA Contest. After 18,000 online votes, she won and was partnered with Tamin Ansary to create a full-length book. While working on the memoir, Farah was still adjusting to t American high school and was enrolled in ESL classes to master English. Since the publication, she has started college in Chicago and gained her American citizenship. Picture taken by World Relief

Reading Focus: Daily Life in Afghanistan Impact of Landmines Overcoming Obstacles Struggles of an Amputee Adjusting to American Schools Respect for Other Cultures Becoming an American Citizen Is Farah heroic? As a child, I lived a fairly happy life…We heard occasional explosions, but those rockets never landed near our house. We heard distant gunfire, but we grew up with that sound, remembers Farah, who lived in Kabul, Afghanistan.

A Young Heroine…Farah Ahmedi! Picture taken by Life Magazine when Farah met Former First Lady, Laura Bush at the White House.

So…Whats a Memoir? Memoirs are somewhat synonymous with autobiographies. The major difference between the two is that an autobiography usually deals with everything from birth until the writing of the work, where as a memoir usually focuses on the career, struggles and challenges, or the most important aspect of the writers life. Memoirs can also focus on one period or one experience of the writers life. Politicians and military leaders are known to write their memoirs.