Walking the Precipice - by Barbara Bick (Paperback)

About the Book

A human rights activist in Afghanistan witnesses the start of the "War on Terror."

Book Synopsis

An "enthralling" memoir of a woman who risked her life to help a people under siege and a country caught between freedom and oppression (Publishers Weekly--starred review).

In 1990, sixty-five-year-old activist and grandmother Barbara Bick traveled with a women's delegation to Afghanistan for what she thought would be her last great adventure. Instead, Bick forged deep friendships with her Afghan hosts--only to watch in horror as the Taliban took over most of the country and instituted fiercely anti-woman policies.

Eleven years later, at age 76, Bick returned to Afghanistan, travelling to the region controlled by the Northern Alliance, an anti-Taliban militia. In early September 2001, Bick walked out of a compound where militia leader Ahmad Shah Massoud was also staying. Minutes later, Taliban infiltrators assassinated Massoud--a prelude to the al Qaeda attacks on the United States.

As the US government became deeply involved in Afghanistan, Bick decided to return once again to see how women were faring under the new government. In 2004, she was one of the few Western women able to bring years of experience to understanding the country's trauma.

Walking the Precipice gives new insight into the people, politics, and culture of a country that is on everyone's radar--for its beauty, and for its tragic place history.

Review Quotes

"Enthralling . . . One of her most compelling and emotional episodes . . . By the end of this short but dense narrative, readers will have a far greater understanding of the region [Afghanistan] and the stakes under which its people labor" --Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Her recollections. . .grow especially poignant as age and frailty force her onto the sidelines. Bick's commitment to assisting women on the other side of the world is worthy of high admiration, and her book can serve as a primer for new generations of women inspired to help others as she did." --Booklist

"Walking the Precipice is a deeply personal account told with honesty, humor, and insight. The author never claims more for herself than is appropriate, nor does she apologize for her emotional responses to what she sees. . . . she brings to bear acute powers of observation, a deep concern for an oppressed group of women, and her own impressive background as an organizer in a significant moment in history. To read Walking the Precipice is to be moved and educated." --The Martha's Vineyard Times

About the Author

Barbara Bick (1925-2009) was a longtime peace and human rights activist, working for Women Strike for Peace, NEGAR-Support for Women of Afghanistan, the Institute for Policy Studies, the Institute of Women's Policy Research, and the National Conference of State and Local Public Policies. She is the author of Culture and Politics and Walking the Precipice.