Malala Thought She’d Never Fall in Love

Modern Love

The New York Times

Storytelling, Nytimes, Nyt, Redemption, New York Times, Society & Culture, Loss, Essay, Love

4.3 • 9K Ratings

🗓️ 15 October 2025

⏱️ 56 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

When she was 15 years old, Malala Yousafzai was shot by the Taliban, targeted for saying that young women should have the right to an education. By the time she woke from the ensuing coma, the world had already cast her in the role of fearless activist. In the years that followed, she embraced the part, starting the Malala Fund and traveling the globe speaking truth to power. But now Malala has a new memoir out called “Finding My Way,” and she’s ready to reintroduce herself. Today, she tells us about navigating ordinary life — like making friends at university, finding her personal style, going to parties and … falling in love. “Finding My Way” comes out on Oct. 21. The Modern Love team also wants to hear your questions about dealing with family during the holidays. Read our submission guidelines here.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey everyone, it's Anna. Look, Thanksgiving is coming up already. I can hardly believe it. You can hardly believe it, but it's around the corner. And for a lot of people, Thanksgiving means seeing your family, which can be wonderful, but it can also be tricky. So if you're going to see your family this holiday season, we want to help. Is there anything you
0:21.1	could use some advice on? Like, for example, is there always a fight that comes up and you want to
0:25.9	avoid it this year? Or maybe someone's passed away and it's going to be tough without them and
0:30.6	you'd like tips on how to navigate that? Or maybe you're bringing home a new partner and
0:34.9	you're afraid it's going to be awkward. If you're looking for advice on any of these questions or other questions about dealing with your family, send us a
0:42.2	voice memo explaining your situation and asking your question. You can send it to Modern Love
0:47.2	Podcast at NYTimes.com. That's Modern Love Podcast at NYTimes.com. We look forward to hearing from you.
0:57.3	Love now and more.
0:58.9	You're falling in love last.
0:59.8	I love love.
1:00.4	The love was stronger than anything.
1:02.9	For the love, love.
1:03.9	And I love you more than anything.
1:06.1	Modern love.
1:06.9	There's to love.
1:08.9	Love.
1:17.8	From the New York Times, I'm Anna Martin. This is Modern Love. Today I'm talking to Malala Yusuf Saim.
1:24.5	Malala became a feminist and political icon at 15 years old after a member of the Taliban tried to assassinate her while she was riding the school bus. She was targeted for
1:27.9	saying that girls should have the right to go to school. At 16, she wrote a memoir about the experience,
1:33.4	and at 17, she became the youngest person to ever win the Nobel Peace Prize. For years, the world has
1:40.3	known her as this extraordinary young activist. But now she has a new memoir out. It's called
1:46.1	Finding My Way. And in it, she talks about learning to do ordinary things. Make friends, find her
	...

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