ABOUT THE BOOK:
A Thousand Splendid Suns is a breath-taking story set against the volatile events of Afghanistan’s last thirty years – from the Soviet invasion to the reign of the Taliban to post-Taliban rebuilding – that puts the violence, fear, hope, and faith of this country in intimate, human terms. It is a tale of two generations of characters brought jarringly together by the tragic sweep of war, where personal lives – the struggle to survive, raise a family, find happiness – are inextricable from the history playing out around them. Propelled by the same storytelling instinct that made The Kite Runner a beloved classic, A Thousand Splendid Suns is at once a remarkable chronicle of three decades of Afghan history and a deeply moving account of family and friendship. It is a striking, heart-wrenching novel of an unforgiving time, an unlikely friendship, and an indestructible love – a stunning accomplishment.
REVIEW BY DANIA:
I pull out a chair, switch on my laptop and open this document. I crack my knuckles and place my hands on the keypad. But nothing happens.
What do I have to say about this book?
It was sad?
It was beautiful?
It was amazing?
It’s one of the best books I’ve ever read?
No. All of those don’t describe my feelings.
They don’t describe the tears that left my eyes as I flipped every page, the simple yet deep camaraderie I felt with Laila and Mariam.
The way the words in this book were so simple yet so full of emotions. The way I pushed away this book at every single opportunity I got, to make sure that I wouldn’t feel these emotions again.
The purity, sanctity and density of those emotions are something I cannot describe. But I can try to describe the book.
I can try to describe each character in the most beautiful way, in my capacity as a writer. So, let me go on.
Mariam- a girl, a mother, an aunt, a sister, a daughter and a wife.
All things that she thought she couldn’t live up to in her lifetime.
But she didn’t understand that she had long passed these roles. She had become something else, for the better or worse, no one can know.
Laila – a daughter
But she could never be one. Even in death, her brothers were better children than her. But were they? Were they the ones who handled the ‘bad days’ of their mother? Were they the ones who watched their family crumble? Were they the ones who had to go through years of pain and torture? Were they the ones who were deceived for years?
Well, dear reader, I leave it up to you.
Try to help me figure out what this book means to the millions who’ve read it.
Try to help us understand why we cannot describe the emotions we felt.
Try to help us tell you that we cannot feel those emotions ever again.
OTHER INFORMATION: None
TRIGGER WARNINGS:
1. Abortion
2. Cancer
3. Death (including a child)
4. Child abuse
5. Domestic abuse
6. Miscarriage
7. Mutilation
8. Pregnancy
9. Rape
10. Sexism
11. Violence
12. War
