Bring Back Our Girls: The Untold Story of the Global Search for Nigeria’s Missing Schoolgirls

Boko Haram kidnapped 276 schoolgirls in the Nigerian town of Chibok in 2014. After the Twitter campaign #BringBackOurGirls went viral, leaders recognized the hostages’ value as ransom, for the release of captured fighters as well as for financial reward. Wall Street Journal writers Parkinson and Hinshaw followed the complex negotiations to obtain the release of the Chibok Girls, and their thorough account explains how negotiators, former Boko Haram fighters, and others, brought about the eventual release of most of the girls. Using diaries kept, at great risk, by two of the girls, the authors offer insight into the incredible courage and faith the captives maintained while they endured more than three years of captivity. Descriptions of religious coercion, starvation, and emotional suffering are written with sensitivity and care. Final chapters report on a few of the girls’ experiences following their release in 2017.