Darya, now in her mid-20s, says her life was changed by a Hoopoe Book. Born in a refugee camp in Peshawar, Pakistan, she was repatriated to Afghanistan with her family aged around 8 years old.
While everyone else was celebrating their return, she felt alone, confused and unsettled in an alien land. Then one day a Hoopoe Book arrived at the house and she used it to help teach herself to read.
Next she taught the younger children in the household and some of the women. As well as bringing her a sense of accomplishment through learning and of belonging through helping others, she says it changed the way she viewed her world — helping her assess events and people, and find the positive in things and situations.
Today she lives in Toronto, Canada with her family and dreams of becoming a writer.