Khaled Hosseni is one of my favorite authors. His first novel,"The Kite Runner" made me cry with every page I turn. Same goes with his next novel, "A Thousand Splendid Suns", which I just finished reading recently.
With the same Afghan setting, like in his first book, "A Thousand Splendid Suns" tells the story of how the lives of two women have crossed path during the period when Afghanistan was ravished by war and political turmoil. Hosseni describes how the change in society greatly affected the people, especially women in general, noting strict rules and beliefs implemented during which women are restricted to do anything for them to progress.
Mariam and Laila lived different lives but when the war entered the borders of Afghanistan, both women endured the hardships every women of every class had to face. During the years of the Soviet invasion to the Taliban regime, these two women forged a bond with each other as they tried to find happiness, despite the war that tore their families apart.
Mariam, a country girl born out of wedlock, was trying to find the family she never had. Her own father gave her away in marriage just to hide the shame of getting a housekeeper, her mother pregnant. Her dreams of starting her own family slowly shattered when she had difficulty bearing children, which gave her husband reasons not to respect her as a woman.
Laila, raised to believe that women has something to offer the society, just wanted to have her family back after the deaths of her two older brothers, killed in the fight against the Soviets. But the aftermath of the Soviet war left her with no one but herself so in the verge of desperation, she had no choice but to marry Rasheed who happens to be Mariam's husband.
The friendship between Laila and Mariam during the times they lived together grew deeper after years of hardship in the hands of a cruel husband. And they've made a pact to give each other the kind of happiness they deserve - for Mariam, the feeling of motherhood through Laila's daughter Aziza and for Laila, finding the love of life no matter what the odds are.
According to Hosseni, "the phrase 'A Thousand Splendid Suns' comes from a poem about Kabul by Saib-e-Tabrizi, a seventeenth-century Persian poet, who wrote it after a visit to the city left him deeply impressed. I was searching for English translations of poems about Kabul, for use in a scene where a character bemoans leaving his beloved city, when I found this particular verse. I realized that I had found not only the right line for the scene, but also an evocative title in the phrase 'a thousand splendid suns,' which appears in the next-to-last stanza. The poem was translated from Farsi by Dr. Josephine Davis"
I wept while I read through how these women have struggled to the abuse, the discrimination and the conflicts they had to endure because of the change in society. But having each other's company gave them the strength to withstand the trials they have to face.
Well, I don't want to give out the ending of the story since it would kill the anticipation for those who would want to share the same experience of reading the book. It's one of the best books I've read so far this year and I would definitely recommend this book to everyone.
With the same Afghan setting, like in his first book, "A Thousand Splendid Suns" tells the story of how the lives of two women have crossed path during the period when Afghanistan was ravished by war and political turmoil. Hosseni describes how the change in society greatly affected the people, especially women in general, noting strict rules and beliefs implemented during which women are restricted to do anything for them to progress.
Mariam and Laila lived different lives but when the war entered the borders of Afghanistan, both women endured the hardships every women of every class had to face. During the years of the Soviet invasion to the Taliban regime, these two women forged a bond with each other as they tried to find happiness, despite the war that tore their families apart.
Mariam, a country girl born out of wedlock, was trying to find the family she never had. Her own father gave her away in marriage just to hide the shame of getting a housekeeper, her mother pregnant. Her dreams of starting her own family slowly shattered when she had difficulty bearing children, which gave her husband reasons not to respect her as a woman.
Laila, raised to believe that women has something to offer the society, just wanted to have her family back after the deaths of her two older brothers, killed in the fight against the Soviets. But the aftermath of the Soviet war left her with no one but herself so in the verge of desperation, she had no choice but to marry Rasheed who happens to be Mariam's husband.
The friendship between Laila and Mariam during the times they lived together grew deeper after years of hardship in the hands of a cruel husband. And they've made a pact to give each other the kind of happiness they deserve - for Mariam, the feeling of motherhood through Laila's daughter Aziza and for Laila, finding the love of life no matter what the odds are.
According to Hosseni, "the phrase 'A Thousand Splendid Suns' comes from a poem about Kabul by Saib-e-Tabrizi, a seventeenth-century Persian poet, who wrote it after a visit to the city left him deeply impressed. I was searching for English translations of poems about Kabul, for use in a scene where a character bemoans leaving his beloved city, when I found this particular verse. I realized that I had found not only the right line for the scene, but also an evocative title in the phrase 'a thousand splendid suns,' which appears in the next-to-last stanza. The poem was translated from Farsi by Dr. Josephine Davis"
I wept while I read through how these women have struggled to the abuse, the discrimination and the conflicts they had to endure because of the change in society. But having each other's company gave them the strength to withstand the trials they have to face.
Well, I don't want to give out the ending of the story since it would kill the anticipation for those who would want to share the same experience of reading the book. It's one of the best books I've read so far this year and I would definitely recommend this book to everyone.
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