
I Choose My Beginning
A Story of Courage and Activism
Nadia Murad(Author)
Virago Press Ltd
Will be published approx. on 17. September 2026
Book
Hardback
304 pages
978-0-349-02048-8 (ISBN)
Description
FROM THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE LAUREATE, AND RECIPIENT OF FRANCE'S LEGION OF HONOUR, NADIA MURAD RECLAIMS THE STORY OF HER LIFE IN THIS PROFOUNDLY MOVING MEMOIR INTRODUCED BY GLORIA STEINEM
'Nadia is a fierce warrior for justice and a beautiful human being I feel privileged to know. She will inspire women for generations' AMAL CLOONEY
In 2014, Nadia Murad was living in northern Iraq when her world was shattered. Fighters from the so-called Islamic State attacked her village, massacring hundreds - including her mother and six of her brothers - and forcing her, along with thousands of Yazidi women and girls, into ISIS's system of sexual slavery. Her life since then has been split in two. In one she is a global symbol of courage - a survivor and activist who has stood before world leaders to demand justice. In the other, she is a woman learning how to be a friend, a student, a wife; a woman rediscovering ordinary joy.
In I Choose My Beginning, Nadia brings these two selves together. With honesty and grace, she transforms the pain of her past into a life defined not by what was done to her, but by strength, perseverance, and the freedom to choose happiness. From reshaping international law to building a life filled with friendship and love, Nadia carries the memory of those she lost and those who survived. Their presence reminds her - and all of us - that she has always been more than a victim.
Powerful and deeply inspiring, I Choose My Beginning is the story of an extraordinary woman reclaiming her humanity - and showing that survival is not the end of the story. It is the beginning.
'An inspiring story of a woman fighting to create a life that's all her own' KIRKUS REVIEWS
'Nadia is a fierce warrior for justice and a beautiful human being I feel privileged to know. She will inspire women for generations' AMAL CLOONEY
In 2014, Nadia Murad was living in northern Iraq when her world was shattered. Fighters from the so-called Islamic State attacked her village, massacring hundreds - including her mother and six of her brothers - and forcing her, along with thousands of Yazidi women and girls, into ISIS's system of sexual slavery. Her life since then has been split in two. In one she is a global symbol of courage - a survivor and activist who has stood before world leaders to demand justice. In the other, she is a woman learning how to be a friend, a student, a wife; a woman rediscovering ordinary joy.
In I Choose My Beginning, Nadia brings these two selves together. With honesty and grace, she transforms the pain of her past into a life defined not by what was done to her, but by strength, perseverance, and the freedom to choose happiness. From reshaping international law to building a life filled with friendship and love, Nadia carries the memory of those she lost and those who survived. Their presence reminds her - and all of us - that she has always been more than a victim.
Powerful and deeply inspiring, I Choose My Beginning is the story of an extraordinary woman reclaiming her humanity - and showing that survival is not the end of the story. It is the beginning.
'An inspiring story of a woman fighting to create a life that's all her own' KIRKUS REVIEWS
Reviews / Votes
Nadia is a fierce warrior for justice and a beautiful human being I feel privileged to know. She will inspire women for generations -- Amal Clooney An inspiring story of a woman fighting to create a life that's all her own * Kirkus Reviews *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Little, Brown Book Group
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Trade binding
Dimensions
Height: 240 mm
Width: 156 mm
Thickness: 22 mm
ISBN-13
978-0-349-02048-8 (9780349020488)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
approx. 09/2026
Virago Press
€16.99
Not yet available
Person
Nadia Murad is a human rights activist. She is the recipient of the Vaclav Havel Human Rights Prize and the Sakharov Prize, and is the UN's first Goodwill Ambassador for the Dignity of Survivors of Human Trafficking. Together with Yazda, a Yazidi rights organization, she is currently working to bring the Islamic State before the International Criminal Court on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity. She is also the founder of Nadia's Initiative, a programme dedicated to helping survivors of genocide and human trafficking to heal and rebuild their communities.