“She Is Just a Kid: Why I Wrote a Story About the Girls the World Often Forgets” – A Guest Post by Alireza Hazareh

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I’m delighted to welcome author Alireza Hazareh to What Cathy Read Next today to talk about his novel She Is Just a Kid which was published on 10th September 2026. Described as ‘a story of childhood, survival and hope’, She Is Just a Kid is available to purchase in hardback, paperback or as an ebook from Amazon.

I hope you enjoy as much as I did reading his guest post about the inspiration for the novel. I’m pretty sure you’ll agree with his observation that fiction can connect us with experiences that may be very different from our own.

About the Book

Sara is just a child growing up in a poor and isolated village, surrounded by love, fear, tradition, and dreams she barely understands.

But when decisions are made for her, her life begins to change in ways she could never imagine.

She Is Just a Kid is an emotional fictional story about childhood, fear, survival, kindness and hope. Inspired by struggles that many girls and women have faced in real life, it follows a young girl trying to hold on to herself in a world that keeps changing around her.

A simple, heartbreaking, and hopeful story about how much a child can endure—and how powerful even a small amount of kindness can be.

Find She Is Just a Kid on Goodreads

She Is Just a Kid: Why I Wrote a Story About the Girls the World Often Forgets by Alireza Hazareh

What if you were still a child, but the most important decisions about your future were already being made by someone else? What if your dreams, education, freedom, and even your marriage were decided before you were old enough to understand what those decisions meant?

These questions were at the heart of my inspiration for writing She Is Just a Kid.

As an Afghanistan author now living in Australia, I have often thought about how differently children experience the world. While some grow up dreaming about their careers, travelling, and discovering who they want to become, others face responsibilities and hardships that no child should have to carry.

I wanted to explore that difference through fiction.

The Story Behind Sara

My novel follows Sara, a young girl growing up in a poor and isolated village. Like any child, she has dreams, fears, and hopes for her future. But her life begins to change when decisions are made for her without her understanding or consent.

Through Sara’s journey, I explore difficult subjects, including forced marriage, displacement, family separation, and the struggle for freedom.

Although the novel is fictional, its themes are inspired by real struggles that many girls and women have experienced.

I did not want Sara to be a perfect heroine who always knows what to do. I wanted her to be human: sometimes frightened, sometimes confused, sometimes hopeful, and sometimes simply wishing for an ordinary childhood.

Because before anything else, she is just a kid.

Why These Stories Matter

When we hear about forced marriage, conflict, or refugees, we often encounter numbers, reports, and statistics. But behind every number is a human being.

A girl who might love reading. A child who dreams of becoming a teacher or doctor. Someone who wants to laugh with friends, spend time with family, and feel safe.

I believe fiction can help readers connect with experiences that may be very different from their own. A story allows us to spend time with a character, understand her fears, and see the world through her eyes.

I don’t expect one novel to change the world. But if it encourages even one reader to think more deeply about the rights, choices, and futures of girls, then writing it has been worthwhile.

Finding Hope in Difficult Places

Despite its painful moments, She Is Just a Kid is not only a story about suffering. It is also about kindness, survival, resilience, and hope.

I believe even in the darkest circumstances, a small act of compassion can make an enormous difference.

Sometimes hope comes from an unexpected person. Sometimes it comes from finding the strength to continue when everything seems lost. That is something I wanted readers to remember long after finishing Sara’s story.

A Final Thought

Every child deserves the opportunity to dream, learn, grow, and make choices about their own future. No girl should lose her childhood simply because of where she was born or the expectations placed upon her.

I wrote She Is Just a Kid because I believe these stories deserve to be told, these voices deserve to be heard, and every child’s future deserves to matter.

About the Author

Alireza Hazareh is an Afghanistan writer living in Australia. His fiction explores human experiences, survival, fear, and hope. His novel She Is Just a Kid follows a young girl whose life is shaped by difficult choices, displacement, and the search for freedom.

He also writes horror and suspense stories. Discover more of his work on his website.

Connect with Alireza
Website | Instagram |

#WWWWednesday – 28th October 2026

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Hosted by Taking on a World of Words, this meme is all about the three Ws:

  • What are you currently reading?
  • What did you recently finish reading?
  • What do you think you’ll read next?

Why not join in too?  Leave a comment with your link at Taking on a World of Words and then go blog hopping!

What I’m Currently Reading

The Bohemian Queen by Jean Findlay (ARC, Scotland Street Press)

The sequel to the award-winning The Queen’s Lender, The Bohemian Queen tells the remarkable story of Elizabeth Stuart, daughter of James I of England amd VI of Scotland, whose brief reign as Queen of Bohemia helped ignite the catastrophic Thirty Years’ War and reshape Europe forever.

Set against the backdrop of political intrigue, religious conflict and exile, the novel sees Elizabeth, heavily pregnant with her fifth child, flee Prague following the Battle of White Mountain. Married to Frederick, Elector Palatine, Elizabeth had accepted the crown of Bohemia in a move that would plunge Europe into decades of war. But exile does not diminish her influence.

Through court politics, diplomacy and dynastic ambition, Elizabeth continues to shape the future of Europe while giving birth to eight more children, ensuring her descendants become woven into the ruling houses of an emerging continent.

Julia Wakes by Zoe Caryl (Review copy, courtesy of the author)

It’s 1946, and Evie is back on stage where she belongs, her voice ready to soar in the theatres of Scotland.

One question shadows every note she sings: Is the brilliant young trumpet player who stole her heart under the Indian sun still part of her future?

Myles has dreams of his own, bold and uncompromising, and Evie dares to believe she can build a life where love, family, and a glittering career all shine together. Yet the climb toward “having it all” is steeper than she imagined; as Evie’s star rises, she seizes bright, shining moments of opportunity that strain the fragile balance between career and home, and when life delivers an unexpected miracle, she learns how deep the unbreakable bonds of love really are.

Her journey in the spotlight carries her across the world, taking her far from her beloved Glasgow, bringing moments of
breath taking joy and quiet heartbreak; Evie strives for love, whilst never turning her back on the extraordinary gift that has been given to her – her voice.

Inspired by a true story, Julia Wakes celebrates the resilience of a woman who refuses to give up on her dreams, and the fierce, enduring love that ultimately defines her legacy. This is a story for anyone who has ever reached for that bigger, brighter star, and refused to let go.

The Weight of Angels by John Boyne (Doubleday via NetGalley)

Can one rash decision prove the difference between a life well lived and a life destroyed?

When the Marquis of Queensbury left his calling card at the Albemarle Club in February 1895, it bore only his name and five words: ‘For Oscar Wilde, posing Somdomite’. The famous playwright sued for libel, which led to his arrest, criminal prosecution and imprisonment. From then on, his gilded existence spiralled into public disgrace and an early death.

But what if he had simply ignored the insult?

Rather than dying impoverished in Paris at forty-six, what if he had lived to bear witness to the momentous events and cataclysmic changes at the start of the twentieth century, and even influence some of them? What if the second half of his life were as celebrated, dramatic and tumultuous as the first?

What I’ve Just Read

Three Summers by Karen Swan (Penguin)

1957: The summer of innocence. Amongst the lemon trees, Rafaella Parisi impatiently waits for the summer visitors to arrive in her small fishing village on the coast of Puglia. She may be dating Fon Giannelli, but there is one person she longs to see: Cosimo – son of the wealthy Franchetti family.

1958: The summer everything changes. After a devastating accident at the lavish Franchetti villa, Rafa makes a vow that changes the course of all their futures.

1961: The summer they meet again. When Rafa and Cosi’s worlds collide, Rafa faces an agonizing choice. Is she willing to risk the life she has for the future she once dreamed of? (Review to follow)

The Taper Man by Nick Harkaway (Viking)

It is 1965, and the Cold War has never been colder. The Circus – the secret centre of British intelligence – has one prize asset left in Moscow: a senior Red Army officer with access to the enemy’s deepest secrets. But when a British agent is shot in Helsinki, George Smiley uncovers a Soviet operation that imperils this irreplaceable source.

The trail leads Smiley not to Berlin or Vienna, but Los Angeles – the most foreign place he has ever known. There, in the murky heart of US intelligence, a Communist sleeper agent – a ‘Taper Man’ – is poised to expose Britain’s operative in Moscow. To save him, Smiley must navigate an America riven by divisions over race, loyalty and belonging, all while his spy in Leningrad, Roy Bland, risks everything in pursuit of a Russian defector who holds the final piece of the puzzle. (Review to follow)

May We Feed the King by Rebecca Perry (Granta)

She is a curator, who spends her time dressing the rooms of historic buildings to bring them to life. But in the lush private quarters of a medieval palace, she finds herself so transfixed by the reign of an almost-forgotten King that the edges of her life begin to blur.

He is a reluctant ruler with no hunger for power, rushed to the throne after the untimely deaths of his older brothers. But it isn’t long before whispers begin to fly around the court. And with the growing belief that the King is not fit for the throne comes the idea that another might rule in his stead. (Review to follow)

And yes, I am behind with reviews…

What I’ll Be Reading Next

Adder Stone by Clare Clark (ARC, Wilton Square Books)

It is 1963 and in north Wales the Jones family are being forcibly ejected from the land they have farmed for generations. Their valley is to be drowned, turned into a reservoir for the people of Liverpool.

While her husband Dai is grief-stricken, Olwen Jones privately sees it as a blessing, an unforeseen chance to escape the narrow confines of the valley. But for her teenage son Emyr, Liverpool’s careless arrogance is proof that Wales will never be free to decide its own future until, like Ireland, it breaks the shackles of English imperialism.

Based on true events, Adder Stone is an exploration of personal identity and the possibilities and limits of love. How far will we go for our child or for our country? Who are we when we lose the places and the people that define us? And how much, in the end, is it possible to forgive?