Mother’s pride and unwillingness to accept what’s happening in her country means that she’s still depriving herself the opportunity to get out. Though the novel never condemns Mother for her choice to stay inside, it is possible to read Mother’s choice as giving in to the Taliban’s demands. However, one must also balance this interpretation with the fact that she’s still working on the magazine and turned Parvana into a boy, so it’s possible to see that resistance can take many different forms.