Thura's Diary: My Life in Wartime Iraq

Reach for this book when your teenager begins questioning the human impact of global conflicts or expresses anxiety about world news. It offers a vital bridge from abstract headlines to the lived reality of a peer, providing a safe space to process the complexities of war through an authentic, relatable voice. Thura al-Windawi documents the 2003 invasion of Baghdad from the perspective of a nineteen-year-old girl. Readers follow her family's attempts to maintain normalcy amidst sirens and strikes, highlighting themes of intense familial love, the psychological weight of uncertainty, and the resilience of the human spirit. It is a profound tool for developing empathy and understanding the Middle Eastern experience beyond Western media tropes.