Authors

I Kick and I Fly by Ruchira Gupta

From Emmy-Award winning social justice activist and feminist campaigner, Ruchira Gupta, comes I Kick and I Fly – a compelling and inspiring coming-of-age novel based on real events about fighting for what you believe in.

Talking about the book author Ruchira Gupta says, ‘Heera’s story is a story of hope in spite of great odds. It’s about our bodies—who they belong to and the command they can give us. It is the story of a community that resolves to make change contagious and succeeds. I hope you find a friend in Heera who will give you some clues to making the changes you would like in your own life.’

Praise for I Kick and I Fly

‘Any work from Ruchira Gupta is sure to further the cause of liberating women, especially, and in this novel, girls.’ -Alice Walker, author of The Colour Purple

‘In I Kick and I Fly, Ruchira Gupta has given young readers an irresistible story, and also one that could save lives. This book is a gift.’ -Gloria Steinem

‘Gupta renders Heera’s perseverance amid gruelling circumstances via straightfoward prose and imbues this searing tale with an ominuos ambiance that complements its dark themes.’ -Publisher’s Weekly

‘Having been to the red-light district I Kick and I Fly so searingly captures, I can testify that this book is essential reading for anyone wanting to help girls end sex-trafficking.’ -Ashley Judd, actress and author of All That is Bitter and Sweet

‘Gupta’s I Kick and I Fly is simply magnificent. A beautifully tender and senstitive exploration of one girl’s fight to reclaim her body in a world where the sex trade is seen as inescapable.’ -Ayaan Mohamud, author of You Think You Know Me

About the book:

It’s time for Heera to write her own story.

In Bihar, India, fourteen-year-old Heera is living on borrowed time. Like most families in her lane, her father plans to sell her into the sex trade to repay his loans. But after a chance meeting with a kung fu instructor, Heera realises there is another way. Through martial arts, Heera learns her body isn’t an object to be commodified, but something she can use to protect herself and those she loves. So when her best friend from school goes missing, Heera embarks on a daring rescue mission that will take her all the way to New York.

About Ruchira Gupta:

Ruchira Gupta is the founder-president of Apne Aap Women Worldwide. She is a social justice activist, feminist campaigner, journalist, Emmy Award–winning documentarian, and professor at New York University who has dedicated her life to creating a world where no child is bought or sold. I Kick and I Fly is her debut novel.

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