A Thousand Splendid Suns- Review

Khalid Hosseini is an Afghan-American writer. He published his first novel, The Kite Runner, in the year 2003 which was a very well-received novel. He wrote his second novel, A Thousand Splendid Suns in the year 2007 which was another bestseller across the world. 

Similar to his first novel, A thousand Splendid Suns is also set up against the background of changing Afghanistan. However, in this novel the political scenario has been described in larger detail and as the story proceeds it highlights how the autocratic leadership of Afghanistan have effected the lives of people, especially women. 

It is a women centric story which revolves mainly around Mariam and Laila. Mariam was an illegitimate daughter of a Jalil Khan, the rich man who owned a cinema in Herat. Her mother Nana referred to Mariam as a 'harami' in the opening chapter of the book, setting the tone for a dramatic story ahead. This particular word not only becomes Mariam's identity but also shaped the rest of her life. At the age of fifteen she was married to a shoemaker from Kabul after a family tragedy. From here started a journey of finding peace within.

Laila, on the other hand, was the daughter of a very progressive man in Kabul who was a staunch supporter of women education. However, Laila's life was turned upside down when she lost everything to the heavy fighting between the Pashtun's forces and the Hazara's. It snatched away her friends, parents, childhood house and made the boy she loved move miles away. 

The story weaves multiple plots together, with each character richly developed. The evolving relationship between Laila and Mariam, which began with rejection and jealousy, ultimately became the most meaningful aspect of their lives. Though they shared similar struggles, their destinies diverged in different directions. For one of them it was a happy ending with love and family by the side whereas for the other it was being publicly executed by the Taliban's, for a crime committed of desperation to protect the only family she had ever known. 

Khalid Hosseini fosters a deep connection between the readers and his characters. As his reader you become so absorbed in his story, feeling every emotion portrayed to the pinnacle, that you almost forget anything exists outside of his stories. 

I promise that once you start reading this book, you wont be able to put it down until you have finished it- even if you are not a fan reading novels. 

 

Yet another, beautifully written, a heart-wrenching novel.