The Daughters of Kobani: A Story of Rebellion, Courage and Justice
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- Create Date：2021-06-23 00:50:59
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Gayle Tzemach Lemmon
- ISBN：1800750455
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Summary
The extraordinary story of the women who took on the Islamic State and won
In 2014， northeastern Syria might have been the last place you would expect to find a revolution centered on women's rights。 But that year， an all-female militia faced off against ISIS in a little town few had ever heard of: Kobani。 By then， the Islamic State had swept across vast swathes of the country， taking town after town and spreading terror as the civil war burned all around it。 From that unlikely showdown in Kobani emerged a fighting force that would wage war against ISIS across northern Syria alongside the United States。 In the process， these women would spread their own political vision， determined to make women's equality a reality by fighting - house by house， street by street， city by city - the men who bought and sold women。
Based on years of on-the-ground reporting， The Daughters of Kobani is the unforgettable story of the women of the Kurdish militia that improbably became part of the world's best hope for stopping ISIS in Syria。 Drawing from hundreds of hours of interviews， bestselling author Gayle Tzemach Lemmon introduces us to the women fighting on the front lines， determined to not only extinguish the terror of ISIS but also prove that women could lead in war and must enjoy equal rights come the peace。
Rigorously reported and powerfully told， The Daughters of Kobani shines a light on a group of women intent on not only defeating the Islamic State on the battlefield but also changing women's lives in their corner of the Middle East and beyond。
In 2014， northeastern Syria might have been the last place you would expect to find a revolution centered on women's rights。 But that year， an all-female militia faced off against ISIS in a little town few had ever heard of: Kobani。 By then， the Islamic State had swept across vast swathes of the country， taking town after town and spreading terror as the civil war burned all around it。 From that unlikely showdown in Kobani emerged a fighting force that would wage war against ISIS across northern Syria alongside the United States。 In the process， these women would spread their own political vision， determined to make women's equality a reality by fighting - house by house， street by street， city by city - the men who bought and sold women。
Based on years of on-the-ground reporting， The Daughters of Kobani is the unforgettable story of the women of the Kurdish militia that improbably became part of the world's best hope for stopping ISIS in Syria。 Drawing from hundreds of hours of interviews， bestselling author Gayle Tzemach Lemmon introduces us to the women fighting on the front lines， determined to not only extinguish the terror of ISIS but also prove that women could lead in war and must enjoy equal rights come the peace。
Rigorously reported and powerfully told， The Daughters of Kobani shines a light on a group of women intent on not only defeating the Islamic State on the battlefield but also changing women's lives in their corner of the Middle East and beyond。
Reviews
Matthew Ruscigno
，
I really wanted to like this book。 The topic is crucially important， relevant， and fascinating。 The profiles of these incredible woman would make a superb， long Atlantic article。 There's probably 5-6k strong words in there， but as a book it really falls short。 Lots of filler that feels ghost-written and is down-right boring。 Some of my specific qualms: - It's very 'these women knew they were different' and 'they stood up for themselves and women everywhere。' Which is great， of course！ But that's I really wanted to like this book。 The topic is crucially important， relevant， and fascinating。 The profiles of these incredible woman would make a superb， long Atlantic article。 There's probably 5-6k strong words in there， but as a book it really falls short。 Lots of filler that feels ghost-written and is down-right boring。 Some of my specific qualms: - It's very 'these women knew they were different' and 'they stood up for themselves and women everywhere。' Which is great， of course！ But that's about the depth of the author's intellectual dive into their feminism。 I wanted to know much more。 - There's not nearly enough about the politics and feminism that define the YPJ。 Ocalan is mentioned， but there's a huge gap in exploring his ideas。 Basically reports that Turkey and USA think he and the PKK are terrorists （hmmmnn I wonder why？）， but the USA softened up on that because the Kurds could help them fight ISIS。 -cont re politics: Murray Bookchin， the political philosopher and anarchist， who greatly influenced Ocalan， is barely mentioned。 He's called 'left of Bernie Sanders。' How do you not discuss his politics in more depth？？ Argubly these women wouldn't be there if it wasn't for his writings。 She doesn't list Ocalan nor Bookchin's books in the further reading section。 Glaring omission。 -It's super pro US military。 There's possibly as many details on the army dudes as there are on the profiled women。 Hundreds of words spent that basically say: US want peace， ISIS bad。 Obviously ISIS is terrible， but the level of discussion in the book would be boring for a 9th grade English class since it's so basic。 Maybe from her other books army people are big fans so she wants to make them happy？ Idk。 I never heard of her or her books before this one。 。。。more
Alyssa White
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Not the best story telling， but an incredible story nonetheless。 "The world has a way of telling girls and young women what they should want for their lives， and of telling them not to ask for too much。 In northeastern Syria， these young women tell you exactly what they want for themselves。 When the world stops speaking for them， you can actually hear what they have to say。" Not the best story telling， but an incredible story nonetheless。 "The world has a way of telling girls and young women what they should want for their lives， and of telling them not to ask for too much。 In northeastern Syria， these young women tell you exactly what they want for themselves。 When the world stops speaking for them， you can actually hear what they have to say。" 。。。more
Beth Revor
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Wow… just wow。 Such a powerful read about what has been truly happening in the fight against ISIS and the plight of the Syrian Kurds， especially these amazing women。 Well researched and well written。
Paige Kirby
，
Really interesting story about women， peace， and security amidst the Syrian war。 The narration focused a lot on specific battle details for my taste， and I would have loved more information about how this fits into broader WPS and women’s rights narratives in the region。
Jessica Scott
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A powerful and important book。 Lemmon takes the reader inside the personal fight for survival that the Daughters of Kobani represents -women on the front lines fighting for their own lives and the lives of everyone around them。 The consequences of failure are personal and horrible: slavery and brutality at the hands of Isis。 I didn't expect， however the insights into the man who developed Kurdish feminist theory and this is something I found fascinating。 This is a really important and powerful b A powerful and important book。 Lemmon takes the reader inside the personal fight for survival that the Daughters of Kobani represents -women on the front lines fighting for their own lives and the lives of everyone around them。 The consequences of failure are personal and horrible: slavery and brutality at the hands of Isis。 I didn't expect， however the insights into the man who developed Kurdish feminist theory and this is something I found fascinating。 This is a really important and powerful book and should be included on every reading list about the Syrian conflict and the hope of the Kurdish people for the right to self governance。 。。。more
Linda
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Important story that reads like a NYTimes article。
Leanne
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An extraordinary and heartbreaking story of the ugliest fighting known to mankind stopped by young women who simply felt death was a better future than living and won their fragile freedom by destroying ISIS。
Marie Pattison Frey
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Interested in the topic and generally informative with bias。 I’ll look for other writers on this topic。
Max
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A compelling story， but written in clichés with no original voice。 The telling glorifies （or at least romanticizes） warfare， presumably acceptable due to the conflict itself being boiled down to good versus evil， women versus women-haters。 Not enough background on the combatants or reflection on what caused the ISIS crisis。 The Kurdish identity still seems very vague。 There were some interesting notes about Abdullah Öcalan who I was previously unaware of and would like to learn more about。 From A compelling story， but written in clichés with no original voice。 The telling glorifies （or at least romanticizes） warfare， presumably acceptable due to the conflict itself being boiled down to good versus evil， women versus women-haters。 Not enough background on the combatants or reflection on what caused the ISIS crisis。 The Kurdish identity still seems very vague。 There were some interesting notes about Abdullah Öcalan who I was previously unaware of and would like to learn more about。 From beginning to end the point seemed to be simply that Kurdish women are good and brave and pretty much everyone else is backward or bad。 。。。more
Andrew Winner
，
A compelling story of the women fighters of the YPJ -- the Kurdish women's protection units in northeastern Syria during first the battle against the Assad regime and later against ISIS/Daesh。 The book has gotten great and widespread press， and the stories of the individual women and the role of women in this long fight， and the related fight for Kurdish political rights， are important and terrific。 I wish， however， that the story-telling was a bit better。 I feel like there are spots where the a A compelling story of the women fighters of the YPJ -- the Kurdish women's protection units in northeastern Syria during first the battle against the Assad regime and later against ISIS/Daesh。 The book has gotten great and widespread press， and the stories of the individual women and the role of women in this long fight， and the related fight for Kurdish political rights， are important and terrific。 I wish， however， that the story-telling was a bit better。 I feel like there are spots where the author could have used a better editor just to smooth out some of the prose and to connect the individual stories more clearly to the overall narrative of what was happening on the ground militarily and politically。 。。。more
Garryvivianne
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Women fighting to save their cities from ISIS。 Author interviews some of these women。 Very powerful， very intense。 One feeling among them is， what do we have to lose？ Exactly。。。they have no rights， no respect。 They gain admiration AND respect from the men they fight along side with。 They are brave women indeed。
Federico Marchisio
，
A powerful story of courage and defiance that demonstrates how anyone can be the agent of change they wish to see。
Kajsa
，
Super interesting but slow going for me。
Kay
，
This is my second book by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon and both have been well researched and very good。 The Daughters of Kobani tells the stories of female fighters， YPJ， the Kurdish Women's Protection Unit。 I love that her books shine light on courageous women。 It is very powerful。Kobani， a Kurdish majority city is located in northern Syria with its border to Turkey。 In September 2014， ISIS seized parts of Kobani。 I recall reading this in the news and wonder why didn't they just leave。 Some did。 As a This is my second book by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon and both have been well researched and very good。 The Daughters of Kobani tells the stories of female fighters， YPJ， the Kurdish Women's Protection Unit。 I love that her books shine light on courageous women。 It is very powerful。Kobani， a Kurdish majority city is located in northern Syria with its border to Turkey。 In September 2014， ISIS seized parts of Kobani。 I recall reading this in the news and wonder why didn't they just leave。 Some did。 As a matter of fact hundreds of thousands did cross into Turkey。 Some who didn't make it out were stuck。 ISIS snipers were on rooftops， and IED were hidden in the streets。 People were stopped from fleeing and used as human shield against US airstrikes。 Women were caged and sold at a market as brides。 One woman was sold ten times after the man dies fighting she would be resold again。 Innocent people were burned alive in cages。 Beheaded。 This were ISIS recruitment campaign。 Then there are those who stayed and fought for freedom and retake their cities， including Raqqa。 The YPJ are frontline combat fighters as they have no regulation to have women serve in a particular unit。 They fought for women's equality， rights and freedom。 They were not going to wait until the war ended。 The situation was tragic and heartbreaking， at the same time I truly admire their strength， resilience and bravery。 YPJ and allies took back Kobani in January 2015。 。。。more
Zhivko Kabaivanov
，
The Daughters of Kobani （2021） tells the riveting， edge-of-your-seat tale of a group of Syrian Kurdish women who took up arms against the terror group ISIS。 Brimming with pathos and unimaginable courage， it’s a story of women fighting evil and winning， against all the odds。 But it’s equally about women defying a culture that would deny them their rights – and striving toward a better one。
Moriah Lee
，
One of the best books I’ve read on foreign war。 The SDF and it’s defeat is ISIS finally in 2019 is an inspiring and encouraging documentation of women doing what they do best- quietly and throughly doing *exactly* what needs to be done for the healing of their society。 I am honored to see into these women’s lives but heartbroken that Syrian Kurds are now fighting Turkish forces。 Sidebar> every time I read about al-Assad my mind replaces his name with “al-Ass hat。”
Arnab Roy
，
This is a book of hope that is powerful in its setting and its message for women fighting for their rights。 Women who fought one of the most brutal forces in recent times and won while also waging a cultural war for their rights and identity。 Wonderfully inspirational yet deeply poignant。The stories of these daughters: Nowruz， Znarin， Azeema， and Rojda， fighting and leading men through an armed conflict tie-to-toe while fighting their own cultural battles to secure the rights for fellow women is This is a book of hope that is powerful in its setting and its message for women fighting for their rights。 Women who fought one of the most brutal forces in recent times and won while also waging a cultural war for their rights and identity。 Wonderfully inspirational yet deeply poignant。The stories of these daughters: Nowruz， Znarin， Azeema， and Rojda， fighting and leading men through an armed conflict tie-to-toe while fighting their own cultural battles to secure the rights for fellow women is visceral， valiant and valuable lesson for all men & women anywhere。 Each of them dares to dream and hopes desperately for an end to the conflict。 Yet it’s uplifting to read about their family lives。 Rojda’s uncle – the one who’d tried to stop her from playing soccer – now actively seeks out her advice。 And Znarin counts her uncle – the one who’d stopped her from getting an education and almost arranged her marriage – among her friends。Hope is a powerful thing and these daughters prove it。 。。。more
Kay
，
This is a true story of courageous Kurdish women in Syria who fight ISIS for their land。 Just unbelievable how these women desire justice and freedom that they put their lives at stake for the betterment of all。
Danielle Crawford
，
An excellent book about the female commanders of the YPG， an all-women led battalion who fought with the Kurdish forces to expel ISIS from Syria。 It outlines their triumphs and tragedies while expressing their hopes for the future of women around the world。 These women are warriors and freedom fighters， showing the world that fighting for ones home is not something that can be confined by gender。
Rita Boehm
，
I am in awe！Thank you Gayle Lemmon for sharing the incredible stories of these young women who refused to accept the gender limitations imposed by their culture and the outside world。 They deserve the world's gratitude for their sacrifice and their success in destroy ing the ISIS dream of creating a caliphate 。 Unfortunately， we left them and the Kurdish people to face a difficult and uncertain future on their own。 I am in awe！Thank you Gayle Lemmon for sharing the incredible stories of these young women who refused to accept the gender limitations imposed by their culture and the outside world。 They deserve the world's gratitude for their sacrifice and their success in destroy ing the ISIS dream of creating a caliphate 。 Unfortunately， we left them and the Kurdish people to face a difficult and uncertain future on their own。 。。。more
Caroline
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Informative & inspiring account of Kurdish women in NW Syria who formed a military unit and fought and expelled ISIS from their area and set up town councils in which women had equal power with men。 They had advice & air support from the USA and fought alongside men and often led men in the battle against the brutal caliphate， freeing women who had been savagely abused by ISIS！ This went on 2014-2019 with little attention from the world。
Katlyn
，
I chose this book in an effort to read other genres and open my eyes to real life events outside of my Midwestern state。 While I’m extremely impressed with the bravery and tenacity of the female fighters in this book， middle eastern warfare is just not it for me。 I felt the book was well written and seemed to be well researched。 Politics aren’t my thing either， but I was surprised that the author integrated the events surrounding the 2016 election in a way that didn’t feel biased regarding perso I chose this book in an effort to read other genres and open my eyes to real life events outside of my Midwestern state。 While I’m extremely impressed with the bravery and tenacity of the female fighters in this book， middle eastern warfare is just not it for me。 I felt the book was well written and seemed to be well researched。 Politics aren’t my thing either， but I was surprised that the author integrated the events surrounding the 2016 election in a way that didn’t feel biased regarding personal feelings or actions taken by both Obama & Trump。 。。。more
Kay
，
These meet the brave Kurdish women who are fighting for their freedom and their lives。 They have defied cultural customs to fight for freedom from ISIS enslavement and bondage to cultural norms that place little value on women。 These women become prominent in fighting ISIS。 Their story is remarkable and an inspiration for all women。
Tara
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Reading this book was bittersweet。 The women of this novel， Nowruz， Rojda， Azeema， and Znarin are basically the living history of women who stood their ground and showed the world that women can have their own militia and succeed。 Reading about the hard won struggles of many women in Syria; from the battle of Kobani and the battle of Raqqa， leaves me heartbroken because the future of these women is still unclear。 Reading about the rape， torture， and enslavement of women from Syria by ISIS was te Reading this book was bittersweet。 The women of this novel， Nowruz， Rojda， Azeema， and Znarin are basically the living history of women who stood their ground and showed the world that women can have their own militia and succeed。 Reading about the hard won struggles of many women in Syria; from the battle of Kobani and the battle of Raqqa， leaves me heartbroken because the future of these women is still unclear。 Reading about the rape， torture， and enslavement of women from Syria by ISIS was terrifying; no words can explain the utter tragedy of this because of nefarious men who believe that a perfect world does not respect and collaborate with the opposite sex。 This book was highly enlightening of the true terrors of a group that fantasizes a dystopian society。 But more important， the book fills me with hope as women stand their ground and refuse to sit by and watch their inalienable rights as women go by。I am thankful this author researched and completed a book about the history of this country that the world usually ignores。 I am thankful that I was able to read it and learn more about the history of Syria， Turkey， and the US。 。。。more
Tracy
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4。5。 These women are complete and utter bad asses and their story is one that should be told。 I just wish that they could find a place where they could be safe and live the lives that they deserve to live。 These women fought against ISIS and won。
MaryAnne
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What we all should knowI was so very ignorant of what was going on。 But no longer。 These young courageous woman put me and a lot of woman in the USA to shame。 We should not be ignorant of what is going on in the world。i have read and learned and will continue to learn。 Thank you for writing this book。
Jim
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A really interesting story about an army made up of middle eastern women who fought to run ISIS out of a small town in Syria。
Sarah Rose
，
A powerful and important story。
Gabriel Jones
，
3 1/2？ This book is really conflicting for me to read。 I am generally uncomfortable reading about wars， especially ones within my lifetime。 However this isn’t a war due to oil or nationalism or any other immoral reason。 The Kurds were basically on the defensive against a terrorist threat。 I think it is uplifting to see the progress of women in some parts in the Middle East， which has been such an uphill battle。
Kathy Opach
，