The Breadwinner: Chapter 13 Summary & Analysis

The next afternoon, while Parvana and Nooria are out on a walk, Parvana points out that Nooria has never met the groom. Nooria reminds Parvana that the groom used to be their neighbor—and marrying will allow her to go back to school. She’ll live in Mazar-e-Sharif, where the Taliban don’t have control, and the groom’s parents will even send her to university. The letter detailing all of this was passed from woman to woman through Mother and Mrs. Weera’s women’s group, but Parvana is still skeptical. Nooria notes that she hates living under the Taliban and doesn’t feel like she can make a difference in Kabul. In Mazar, she can finish school, get a job, and go out without a burqa. This is what she wants.

Over the next few days while Parvana is out, the adults make plans. Parvana is indignant when Mother announces that they’ll all go to Mazar for the wedding and then will return to Kabul in October, leaving Nooria with her husband. Parvana insists that they have to be home for Father, but Mrs. Weera assures Parvana that she’ll stay and look after Father if he comes home. Unconvinced, Parvana stamps her feet and refuses to go. Mother says that Parvana must come since she’s a child. When Parvana stamps her feet again, Mrs. Weera sends her to get water. After three days of glowering, Mother tells Parvana that they’re leaving her behind. They can’t trust everyone to keep Parvana’s secret in Mazar—and though Parvana is getting her way, Mother reiterates that a child has no right to refuse to do as she’s told.

Parvana’s glad to stay, but she also sulks that she doesn’t get to go. The next day, she tells Shauzia that nothing makes her happy anymore. Shauzia says that she feels the same way. She used to think that having the tray would fix her problems, but her family still goes hungry. Shauzia suggests that someone should bomb Afghanistan so they can all start over, but Parvana points out that they’ve already done that. It didn’t work.

A woman and her husband from Mother’s women’s group will escort Mother, Nooria, and the younger children to Mazar. Nooria is nervous, but she happily tells Parvana that she’s going to tear up her burqa as soon as she’s out of Taliban territory. The next day, Parvana buys food for her family’s journey and buys a fancy pen as a gift for Nooria. Mrs. Weera soothes Mother and assures her that she and Parvana will be fine in Kabul—and by the time Mother returns, the magazine will be ready to distribute. Early the next morning, Mother, Nooria, and the little ones settle in the bed of a pickup. With tears in their eyes, Nooria and Parvana say goodbye. Parvana assures Nooria they’ll see each other soon—Nooria’s new husband will send her back once he realizes how bossy she is.

With most of the family gone, there are fewer chores and more free time. Parvana begins taking Father’s secret books out so she can read. Mrs. Weera believes it’s important to trust Parvana and give her agency. She points out that in some parts of Afghanistan, girls are already married and having babies at age 11. She tells Parvana to keep some pocket money, so Parvana treats Shauzia to lunch some days. They guard each other while they use the bathroom and work through the day. Parvana prefers it that way. Near the end of August, Parvana gets caught in a rainstorm at the market. She races into a bombed-out building to keep her cigarettes dry. Not long after she finds a dry spot to sit, Parvana falls asleep. She wakes up much later and hears a woman crying.