Nooria Timeline and Summary

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• Since the Taliban takeover, sixteen-year-old Nooria hasn't left the small apartment.
• When she is forbidden to go to school, she is devastated.
• She fights with Parvana quite often, and orders her around, telling her to fetch the water and such.
• Nooria has her own chores to take care of, including helping Mother with two-year-old Ali and all of the cleaning.
• She and Mother seem to share a special bond—probably because they are stuck at home all day with the little ones while Parvana and Father are at the marketplace.
• Nooria is the only child who remembers Hossain, who was killed by a land mine, and she tells stories about their brother to Parvana.
• When the Taliban comes into their apartment and kidnaps Father, Nooria covers herself "completely with her chador" and scrunches "into a small ball" because she knows that the Taliban like to steal young women (2.70).
• Mother insists that she and Parvana go to prison to rescue Father, and before they leave Nooria does something "unusual"—she hugs her sister and whispers, "come back" (3.32).
• With Father gone and Mother depressed, Nooria takes over as head of the family. But with food running out, she needs help, so she tells Parvana she has to go out and buy some food. Parvana doesn't want to but Nooria doesn't take no for answer, telling her "Now move!" (4.63).
• When Parvana returns with just tea and rice, Nooria is unimpressed.
• Mrs. Weera arrives, and Nooria feels massive relief because she can "take some of the responsibility off her shoulders" (5.35).
• Nooria continues to gripe about her sister and bust on her, but Mrs. Weera urges Nooria to keep positive.
• Nooria senses Parvana's hesitancy to go into the marketplace as boy, and—in her "nastiest voice" (6.60)—she tells Mother she knew Parvana would be scared. This works, and Parvana storms out.
• Now that Parvana can move about Kabul freely, the family thinks Nooria and the younger kids should go out as well. Nooria isn't thrilled about Parvana being her escort, but everyone hopes that if Nooria gets some fresh air, she won't be as "grumpy" (8.46).
• So Nooria goes out with her siblings; she even flips up her burqa and enjoys the sunshine on her face.
• Mrs. Weera starts a small school in the apartment and Nooria is one of the teachers; sometimes the kids came to her, and other times she goes to them (escorted by Parvana).
• Parvana notices that Nooria has changed—she isn't as ornery.
• When Mother arranges for Nooria to marry a boy from Pakistan, Nooria is pumped. Finally she can dump the burqa, finish school, and attend college, all to realize her ultimate dream of someday becoming a teacher.
• Parvana's gives her a pen as a good-bye present, and as she hops into the truck to head for Pakistan, she has Parvana's gift "clutched in her hand" and tells her, "I don't know when we'll see each other again" (13.35).