I read 50 books in six months

Here's my pick

January 24, 2026

Over the past six months, I’ve read close to 50 books. This might not seem extraordinary for those who are avid readers, but my guilty admission is this: I had almost stopped reading for pleasure some years ago. As a writer you’re expected to read the work of others, but I was so busy writing my own book that whatever I read took the form of research to see how other authors were approaching the craft. It was more homework than the type of reading that constitutes “curling up with a good book.”

Immersing myself in books over the past six months wasn’t a resolution or a professional obligation, rather it has become a way of orienting myself during a period of external ruptures and an internal search for understanding and answers, a retreating inward yet exploring other worlds through the pages of a book.

So on this International Day of Education instead of making big declarations about access, opportunity, and the future of education, I want to instead share one of the books I read recently: Malala Yousafzai’s new memoir, Finding My Way. To be honest, I did not expect to like it as much as I did, expecting it to be yet another celebrity memoir perfectly airbrushed and edited. Instead, the book is a candid and vulnerable account of struggling with sudden visibility at such a tender age; of undertaking an educational journey at one of the world's most sought-after institutions (Oxford); and, ultimately, a coming-of-age book about a young girl from Pakistan.

Malala writes with disarming honesty about having to live up to the exacting standards and expectations of the world, especially as the youngest ever Nobel Peace Prize winner. All she wants is to have as normal and ordinary a college experience as possible, where she isn’t always seen through the lens of being a global icon of girls’ empowerment but is just another young student figuring out her way in life and education.

Although Malala was forcibly displaced and spent her high school and college years in exile in the UK, her depictions of her time at Oxford nonetheless made me think of the challenges and opportunities in store for all globally migrant students, including international students, refugees, and other new immigrants: the excitement of a new culture and being in the hallowed halls of a prestigious institution; imbibing the cultural and educational norms of learning and teaching that can be so different across cultures; and being profoundly grateful for an incredible educational opportunity yet being deeply homesick at the same time. Malala writes about the loneliness of school, the effort of learning not just English but the social grammar of a new country—important lessons that international students learn both inside and outside the classroom. The book is also an enjoyable read for any parent whose high schooler is on the cusp of beginning college, like mine is. Many young students will see their anticipation and fears reflected in Malala’s journey.

Among the many small, human moments in the book are: Malala learning to row on an English river; her experimentation with clothes; her evolving relationship with her traditional South Asian parents as they, too, adjust to life in exile and come to terms with a daughter whose education includes not just a degree but also an emancipation of mind, dreams, and values. A process of unlearning as much as learning.

There are two other powerful themes in the book. Malala reveals her struggle with mental health issues, PTSD in particular. She draws attention to it precisely because there is a shroud of silence around mental health issues in most South Asian countries and cultures. She describes her own reluctance to accept that she needed support, as well as her parents’ resistance to the idea. The other aspect that she writes compellingly about is the plight of Afghan girls and women and their lost educational futures. You an listen to the NPR episode below where she talks about this at length.

One of the most moving accounts in the book is when Malala is finally permitted by the Pakistani government to return to Pakistan to visit the Swat Valley where she grew up and where she also founded a girls’ school with her Nobel Prize money. When she eventually returns, she realizes that the mountains are the same, but she is not. It reminded me of a passage in my memoir as well, where I describe one of my trips back to Delhi, and when the realization sinks in that home is not a fixed construct. The journey of education is ultimately a migration that changes us in ways that cannot be undone.

Listen!

Here are two podcast episodes tied to the themes of the book. The first is a terrific conversation with Malala on NPR’s Fresh Air, where she talks at length about the current status of girls’ and women’s education in South and Central Asia. The second is an episode from my World Wise podcast in which I got to interview Fereshteh Forough, founder of Code to Inspire, a coding school for women in Afghanistan and a TED speaker.

Reading Recommendations

In keeping with Malala’s book and this International Day of Education, here are some more reading suggestions that focus on a journey of education and transformation, with most focusing on higher education.

What are some of your favorite books on similar themes? I would love to hear from you.