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A Thousand Splendid Suns by: Khaled Hosseini

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Rating: - One of my all-time favourites

This has to be one of the best books I have ever read. Beautifully written, with characters you empathise with to the point where you can almost feel their pain, this book is almost impossible to put down. It simply has everything: a great storyline that flows seamlessly, realistic characters, a little history.... truly incredible. I can't praise this book enough. It is a story not just about love, but about true friendship, strength and courage too.

It is interesting, living in a country where women take their rights and their power for granted, to read of women's plight in another part of the world where the situation is (or at least, was) very different and makes you appreciate these things a little more.

Believe the glowing reviews on the site about this book and read it for yourself if you haven't already. I hardly ever re-read a book as I think there are so many other gems out there waiting to be discovered - but I think this is one of the few I will need to revisit again in the future. In the meantime, I have ordered Khaled Hosseini's first novel, The Kite Runner, in the hope it is of the same standard as this one.

Rating: - thought provoking - excellent book

A Thousand Splendid Suns


A great read giving an insight to what life is like in Afghanistan for women.

Rating: - Inspiring

A story of two very different women in Afghanistan. From this book, I learnt far more about the country and culture in Afghanistan, and the background behind the current war, than I have from innumerous news reports. But the background about the country comes second to the story and the characters, who will remain with you long after you've read the last page.

Rating: - A thousand spendid reasons to read this

After the fluff of my previous three reviews, how refreshing it is to be able to review something of substance.

I was lent this book by a colleague and I admit, I did keep looking at it for a while on my bedside table wondering whether I was going to enjoy it, but I dived in regardless. I surprised myself by being pretty engrossed in the story pretty quickly. As I've mentioned before, I'm not heavily into fiction although I do try, and this looked like it was going to be a little heavy going.

It turned out to be a beautiful, tragic story of struggle against unsurmountable odds, tolerance and acceptance, friendship and sacrifice; all against a background of violence.

The central charachter of Mariam formed the spine of the story, with Laila's tale woven in when Mariam was a little older. It was so terribly heartbreaking to read of the hardships of her lifestyle which were interspersed with tiny moments of hope and happiness, only to discover those hopes were dashed, dreams shattered and bodies broken. I could have cried for Mariam when, just as she experienced a modicum of happiness, friendship and love from Laila and the children, events took a turn for the worse and she ended up alone yet selflessly making the ultimate sacrifice for Laila's family. Laila too, found an ally, companion, protector and mother figure.

A beautiful story of love and friendship in cruel and brutal circumstances, which draws you in and stays with you after you've finished the last page.

Rating: - Broading one's understanding

This book gave me a deeper understanding of some both the uniqueness and universality of the challenges women
can have in prewar and current Afghanistan.

Obviously here in the west one takes for granted that women can decide much of their "fate" --however,
some of the unfortunately common denominators are present in abusive relationships.
I found the book an interesting read. It IS a romantic novel, but that being said, I believe it is not overdone with cliques.

I would recommend it to others to get a deeper insight.

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