Two years ago, a 10 year-old Yemeni schoolgirl named Nujood was married off to a delivery man in his 30s. The girl's father made the husband promise to wait until puberty to consummate the marriage, but the man did it on their wedding night anyway.

Everyday, Nujood feared the coming night when she would be beaten and forced to have sex. So, she did the highly improbable in a country that offers little protection for women's rights: she found bus money and went to the courthouse to ask for a divorce.

A sympathetic lawyer named Shada Nasser found her and fought her case pro-bono, while media outlets turned the story into a national sensation. Since a husband has nearly limitless rights in Yemen, Nujood had to pay her husband a $250 penalty for divorce-- four months' salary for the average Yemeni. Money was donated to Nujood to pay the penalty.

A large part of the problem is a lack of family planning and education. Nujood's father, Ali, is unemployed, has two wives, and 16 children. He is unable to provide for his family, so instead he has been selling off his daughters for dowries to feed the other children. Ali normally would have been furious that Nujood shamed his family be divorcing her husband. Instead, as Western media and donors have flooded Nujood with awards and money for education, Nujood has become the breadwinner for the entire house.

This month, Nujood published an autobiography, written with Delphine Minoui. Predictably, her dream is to become a women's rights lawyer just like Shada. Read more at the LA Times, Time Magazine, NYTimes, and yes, at Glamour Magazine (it's actually good article, I promise!!).