View the Table of Contents
Read the Foreword

aAn invaluable anthology. . . . The individuals in this anthology . . . tell stories so vital and impassioned that we are moved to become lecteurs engagA(c)s, moved not merely by their writing but by their courage and conviction of the their lives.a
--"BookForum"

aAs an act of commemoration, as well as a sobering reminder of the world in which writers are frequently -- and all too easily--silenced, this is an exceptional anthology.a
--"Publishers Weekly"

aSome of the prose is sparse, testifying to the economy of writers hurried by the threat of discovery; other pieces are rich with the care of dazzling minds left with no company but words.a
--"Utne Reader"

aThe selections make clear that many countries not ordinarily thought of as authoritarian are nevertheless not really safe for free expression. A compelling and worthwhile purchase; recommended for all libraries.a
--"Library Journal"

aPEN acts as the voice and conscience of everyone who cares about literature. In telling their stories, the incredible writers in this collection uncover some of the worldas darker corners. This extraordinary book shows us once again why literature matters.a
--Antonia Fraser, author of "Marie Antoinette: The Journey"

aI defy readers not to be profoundly moved by this splendid anthology. But I have no doubt they will also be stirred by the extraordinary courage of all these writers to triumph over injustice and cruelty. This book is an inspiration.a
--Ronald Harwood, Oscar-winning screenwriter of "The Pianist"; author of the play "The Dresser"

aEngrossing. Reza Barahenias piece is simply electric and others, such asKen Saro-Wiwaas letters, deeply moving. More than anything the collection stands as a testament of courage and a clarion call to recognize free expression for what it really is -- a basic human right.a
--Monica Ali, author of "Brick Lane"

aThis anthology is essential reading for anyone who has ever been moved by the written word. The authors of these pieces have one thing in common. They have all been coerced into not writing. This means that not only do they have powerful stories to tell, but that when, thanks very often to the work of organizations like PEN, they are eventually allowed to tell them, the result is spare, powerful writing, which jolts and challenges our prejudices and assumptions.a
--Michael Palin, author of numerous travel books, including "Around the World in 80 Days"

The freedom to write is under threat today throughout the world, with more than 1,000 writers, journalists, and publishers known to be imprisoned or persecuted in more than 100 countries. Writers Under Siege bears witness to the power and danger of the pen, and to the powerful longing for the right to use it without fear. Collected here are fifty contributions by writers who have paid dearly for the privilege of writing. Some have been tortured; some have been killed. All understand the cost of speaking up and speaking out.

This book was prepared by PEN, which is both the worldas oldest human rights organization and the oldest international literary organization. It commemorates PENas eighty-fifth anniversary and celebrates PENas work by giving voice to persecuted writers from around the globe. The contributors come from more than twenty countries, from Belarus to Zimbabwe. Many arewell-known in the English-speaking world, including Orhan Pamuk, from Turkey, winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize for Literature; Harold Pinter, from England, winner of the 2005 Nobel Prize for Literature; Aung San Suu Kyi, from Burma, winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize; and Anna Politkovskaya, from Russia, the noted journalist and author who was murdered in 2006, shortly after writing the piece that appears in this collection. Other contributors are less famous, perhaps, but their contributions are no less compelling. In prose and poetry, in fiction and non-fiction, they reveal the personal consequences of war, conflict, terrorism, and authoritarianism.

While the pieces collected here differ in their settings and their subjects, all are riveting. Grouped into four sections -- Prison, Death, Asylum, and The Freedom to Write -- they call our attention to the fundamental humanity we share and highlight the inhumanity we can so easily condone.

Contributors include: Chris Abani, Angel Cuadra Landrove, Asiye Guzel, Augusto Ernesto Llosa Giraldo, Mamadali Makhmudov, Orhan Pamuk, Harold Pinter, Anna Politkovskaya, Aung San Suu Kyi, Thich Tue Sy, Gai Tho, and Ken Saro-Wiwa.

View the Table of Contents
Read the Foreword

aAn invaluable anthology. . . . The individuals in this anthology . . . tell stories so vital and impassioned that we are moved to become lecteurs engagA(c)s, moved not merely by their writing but by their courage and conviction of the their lives.a
--"BookForum"

aAs an act of commemoration, as well as a sobering reminder of the world in which writers are frequently -- and all too easily--silenced, this is an exceptional anthology.a
--"Publishers Weekly"

aSome of the prose is sparse, testifying to the economy of writers hurried by the threat of discovery; other pieces are rich with the care of dazzling minds left with no company but words.a
--"Utne Reader"

aThe selections make clear that many countries not ordinarily thought of as authoritarian are nevertheless not really safe for free expression. A compelling and worthwhile purchase; recommended for all libraries.a
--"Library Journal"

aPEN acts as the voice and conscience of everyone who cares about literature. In telling their stories, the incredible writers in this collection uncover some of the worldas darker corners. This extraordinary book shows us once again why literature matters.a
--Antonia Fraser, author of "Marie Antoinette: The Journey"

aI defy readers not to be profoundly moved by this splendid anthology. But I have no doubt they will also be stirred by the extraordinary courage of all these writers to triumph over injustice and cruelty. This book is an inspiration.a
--Ronald Harwood, Oscar-winning screenwriter of "The Pianist"; author of the play "The Dresser"

aEngrossing. Reza Barahenias piece is simply electric and others, such asKen Saro-Wiwaas letters, deeply moving. More than anything the collection stands as a testament of courage and a clarion call to recognize free expression for what it really is -- a basic human right.a
--Monica Ali, author of "Brick Lane"

aThis anthology is essential reading for anyone who has ever been moved by the written word. The authors of these pieces have one thing in common. They have all been coerced into not writing. This means that not only do they have powerful stories to tell, but that when, thanks very often to the work of organizations like PEN, they are eventually allowed to tell them, the result is spare, powerful writing, which jolts and challenges our prejudices and assumptions.a
--Michael Palin, author of numerous travel books, including "Around the World in 80 Days"

The freedom to write is under threat today throughout the world, with more than 1,000 writers, journalists, and publishers known to be imprisoned or persecuted in more than 100 countries. Writers Under Siege bears witness to the power and danger of the pen, and to the powerful longing for the right to use it without fear. Collected here are fifty contributions by writers who have paid dearly for the privilege of writing. Some have been tortured; some have been killed. All understand the cost of speaking up and speaking out.

This book was prepared by PEN, which is both the worldas oldest human rights organization and the oldest international literary organization. It commemorates PENas eighty-fifth anniversary and celebrates PENas work by giving voice to persecuted writers from around the globe. The contributors come from more than twenty countries, from Belarus to Zimbabwe. Many arewell-known in the English-speaking world, including Orhan Pamuk, from Turkey, winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize for Literature; Harold Pinter, from England, winner of the 2005 Nobel Prize for Literature; Aung San Suu Kyi, from Burma, winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize; and Anna Politkovskaya, from Russia, the noted journalist and author who was murdered in 2006, shortly after writing the piece that appears in this collection. Other contributors are less famous, perhaps, but their contributions are no less compelling. In prose and poetry, in fiction and non-fiction, they reveal the personal consequences of war, conflict, terrorism, and authoritarianism.

While the pieces collected here differ in their settings and their subjects, all are riveting. Grouped into four sections -- Prison, Death, Asylum, and The Freedom to Write -- they call our attention to the fundamental humanity we share and highlight the inhumanity we can so easily condone.

Contributors include: Chris Abani, Angel Cuadra Landrove, Asiye Guzel, Augusto Ernesto Llosa Giraldo, Mamadali Makhmudov, Orhan Pamuk, Harold Pinter, Anna Politkovskaya, Aung San Suu Kyi, Thich Tue Sy, Gai Tho, and Ken Saro-Wiwa.

On the night of the 22 September 1943 Pearl Witherington, a twenty-nine-year-old British secretary and agent of the Special Operations Executive (SOE), was parachuted from a Halifax bomber into Occupied France. Like Sebastian Faulks' heroine, Charlotte Gray, Pearl had a dual mission: to fight for her beloved, broken France and to find her lost love. Pearl's lover was a Parisian parfumier turned soldier, Henri Cornioley, who had been taken prisoner while serving in the French Logistics Corps and subsequently escaped from his German POW camp. Agent Pearl Witherington's wartime record is unique and heroic. As the only woman agent in the history of SOEs in France to have run a network, she became a fearless and legendary guerrilla leader organising, arming and training 3,800 Resistance fighters. Probably the greatest female organiser of armed maquisards in France, the woman whom her young troops called 'Ma Mere', Pearl lit the fires of Resistance in Central France so that Churchill's famous order to 'set Europe ablaze', which had brought SOE into being, finally came to pass. Pearl's story takes us from her harsh, impoverished childhood in Paris, to the lonely forests and farmhouses of the Loir-et-Cher where she would become a true 'warrior queen'. Shortly before Pearl's death in 2008, the Queen presented her with a CBE in Paris. While male agents and Special Force Jedburghs received the DSO or Military Cross, an ungrateful country had forgotten Pearl. She had been offered a civilian decoration in 1945 which she refused, saying 'There was nothing civil about what I did.' But what pleased her most was to receive her Parachute Wings, for which she had waited over 60 years. Two RAF officers travelled to her old people's home and she was finally able to pin the coveted wings on her lapel. Pearl died in February 2008 aged 93.