Customer Rating: 
Summary: "Knowing and loving are born of this same dust:"
Comment: "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini is a book that the author researched while visiting Kabul. It is a story of friendship between two very dissimilar women who were ages apart in background and in education. They became close in order to survive and to endure the environment that they were forced to live in. The reader grows to understand that there existed between them a closeness like that of a mother and daughter. This intimacy was built upon much mutual respect and much love which these two (2) stunning characters generated for each other. The novel is really the story of the lives of Laila and Mariam.
The title for this novel comes from a 17th Century poem by Saib-e-Tabrizi which was a beautiful poem written in praise of Kabul. The excerpt from which the title originated goes like this: "One could not count the moons that shimmer on her roofs, or the thousand splendid suns that hide behind her walls."
But the beautiful poem begins its praise of this city with these lines:
"Ah! How beautiful is Kabul encircled by her arid mountains
And Rose, of the trails of thorns she envies
Her gusts of powdered soil, slightly sting my eyes
But I love her, for knowing and loving are born of this same dust
These lines above symbolize so much of this novel. It is the understanding of their fate and the knowing and the loving of each other; it is the sticking by their heritage and their people which clearly demonstrates how Mariam and Laila were also "born of this same dust". The thorns in their lives which they both had to endure did not silence them and in their own ways they each made a contribution to each other to contribute either to each other's life or to the other's legacy.
In reading this novel, the reader will be stymied by what the women of Afghanistan had to endure in the face of oppression and in some instances complete domination. Mariam's and Laila's story is not, I imagine, the story of every woman, but it is their story, told so eloquently, by Hosseini.
Reading the novel will make you sad, it might make you feel uncomfortable and in some parts you will wish that you could do something; even though you realize that this is a book of fiction. But literature that tells a story as powerful as this one, and possibly with as much truth about circumstances in it...cannot always be happy. The reader must be willing to look into the window of these women's lives and realize that the spirit of these women will not be broken and that both will be able to make decisions that they are strong enough to endure. Giving back to others "born of this same dust" is the ultimate gift that both women can give to Kabal, its people and to each other.
A worthwhile book.
Bentley/2007
Customer Rating:
Summary: The Sins of the Fathers Are Visited on Everyone
Comment: A THOUSAND SPLENDID SUNS tells the wonderful, intensely moving story of how two modern Afghan women overcome the great challenges that have faced women in Afghanistan and rise above their victimization. Khaled Hosseini has succeeded in capturing many important historical and contemporary themes in a way that will make your heart ache again and again. Why will your reaction be so strong? It's because you'll identify closely with the suffering of almost all the characters, a reaction that's very rare to a modern novel.
In Part One, you meet Miriam at age five as she learns that she is a harami (an illegitimate child). Miriam's wealthy father, Jalil, had seduced a housekeeper, Miriam's mother, Nana, six years earlier and now provides for both of them in a remote shack where he can keep a low profile. Despite his concern about his reputation, Jalil adores the attention that Miriam devotes to him. All proceeds in an artificial and harsh way until one day Miriam decides to demand her father's attention. The consequences shape her world for the rest of her life.
In Part Two, the story moves to focus on Laila, who was born to Miriam's acquaintance Fariba at the end of Part One. Laila's rearing is almost totally the opposite of Miriam's. Laila is loved by both her parents with whom she lives and has many chances to develop her knowledge and skills. Laila lives in Kabul while Miriam grew up in the countryside outside of Herat. Laila is beautiful while Miriam is plainer. They also grow up in different times: Miriam is old enough to be Laila's mother. Miriam never had a male friend while growing up, while Laila is fascinated by the one-legged Tariq. All is going well for Laila until the war intrudes to send her life off into an unexpected direction.
In Part Three, the two women begin to share a destiny and develop a relationship. Their lives are more fundamentally changed by this relationship than by anything else that has happened to them. The magic of the story is most evident in Part Three.
In Part Four, we come into the present, when Afghanistan is once again opening itself to possibilities.
The time span of the book is from 1964 to the present. In the background, you are kept up-to-date on political events that shake the entire country. In some cases, those political events turn into revolutions and wars. In many cases, the violence intrudes into the lives of the book's characters. It's like reading War and Peace as adapted to modern Afghanistan.
The book also deals with issues of class, religion, sexual roles, child rearing, work, education, and community. These issues are highlighted in terms of the different regimes and attitudes of the controlling male characters. For Afghanistan was a world where the men called the shots, unless they chose not to do so. Although the issues that are raised and the way that they are raised are pretty predictable, it's a tribute to Mr. Hosseini that you won't see them coming. He moves his characters and action around in such a way that you won't see much foreshadowing of what's to come. Part of that skill comes in making each page so interesting and engaging that you are pulled away from thoughts like "I wonder where he's going next with this plot." I found myself deeply inside the story throughout. That's rare for me, especially in a story that focuses on female characters.
It's early in the year, but I wouldn't be surprised if A THOUSAND SPLENDID SUNS turns out to have been one of the very top novels of 2007.
I highly recommend this book and encourage you to discuss it with your friends. This novel would be a great choice for your book club.
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