A Thousand Splendid Suns
| Published: 12th May 2008 19:34 |
This epic saga is by the author of The Kite Runner - once again set int Afghanistan, but this time we follow the troubled lives of two women - Mariam & Laila.
Mariam is the illegitimate daughter of a respectable business man who banishes her to live in a hovel with her mother. At the age of 15 she becomes a greater embarrassement to him and she is married off to Rasheed , a bitter and often brutal man 30 years her senior, living in Kabul. Many years later Laila, a young girl of 14, loses her family in dire circumstances and agrees to marry Rasheed in order to survive. She joins the unhappy household as the preferred second wife, but after initial hostility the two women develop a deep and lasting friendship as they overcome not only the atrocities of war, abject poverty and the Taliban regime, but also Rasheed's increasing brutality and viscious beatings.
This is a story of endurance and suffering against all odds, both political and personal, but through friendship, love and sacrifice it ends on a note of optimism and hope.
Hosseini's novel, simply, but beautifully written is full of action and unexpected turns which compels the reader to continue. It is a moving and thought provoking read.
Reviewed by: W. I. Soar
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