A Thousand Splendid Suns

I know you guys are thinking this blog is turning into a library, but I can't help it. It's summer- this is what I do during the summer! Besides, this book was fantastic!

This is Khaled Hosseini's second book. His first one, The Kite Runner, I read while camping about a year and a half ago. It's one of those books that is hard to read (those of you who have read it know what I mean). Terrible, tragic things happen in that book that made it hard to read. But once the conclusion is reached, it's worth it. It's a beautiful story.

Hosseini's second book, A Thousand Splendid Suns, is similar in that it's also hard to read (and worth it). For one, it's the kind of author he is- he will write about terrible, tragic things, but they are terrible, tragic, true things. He writes about Afghanistan because it's his homeland. He writes about the sufferings of his people, because they're his people. He moved from Kabul to the United States in 1980- many people would have fled and not looked back. I'm glad he hasn't chosen that path. In this book, I learned about the Soviet's control of Afghanistan, the communist takeover, the promises of the United States, each government turning corrupt within months, the entrance of the Taliban, our promise finally kept by the bombing after 9/11 that allowed many refugees to return to the Afghanistan they hadn't known in decades, but mostly I learned about life in wartime. It puts a whole new perspective on everything. As it should.

This is an even better novel than his first. Two main differences I want to note: Those of you who thought The Kite Runner was too hard to read, need to read this one. I did not find it as difficult to endure with the characters. I think it's because there is more hope in this novel- there's a kind of reconciliation that takes place that the first story lacked. The second difference is that in The Kite Runner my attention ebbed and flowed with the story. In this second book, I was grabbed by the first chapter and held for the entirety of the book.

My favorite thing about both novels: There is a deeply sacrificial act (sometimes several acts) that portray this image of love so deep it could (and does) change lives. It reminds me of someone else I know...

If this looks interesting to you, I want to encourage you to read The Kite Runner first, and then to read this second book. They aren't related, so I'm not sure why it matters, but it just seems like the right way to do it. Please comment with your thoughts if you've read The Kite Runner or A Thousand Splendid Suns.