Title: A Thousand Splendid Suns 
Author: Khaled Hosseini
Publisher: Riverhead Books
Genre: Contemporary, Historical Fiction
First Publication: 2007
Language: English
Major Characters: Laila, Mariam, Rasheed, Tariq
Setting Place: Herat and Kabul, Afghanistan
Theme: History and Memory in Afghanistan, Suffering and Perseverance, Shame and Reputation, Love, Loyalty, and Belonging, Gender Relations and Female Friendship
Narrator: The story is told in the third person, alternating between Laila’s and Mariam’s point of view
Book Summary: A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
A Thousand Splendid Suns is a breathtaking story set against the volatile events of Afghanistan’s last thirty years—from the Soviet invasion to the reign of the Taliban to post-Taliban rebuilding—that puts the violence, fear, hope, and faith of this country in intimate, human terms.
It is a tale of two generations of characters brought jarringly together by the tragic sweep of war, where personal lives—the struggle to survive, raise a family, find happiness—are inextricable from the history playing out around them.
Propelled by the same storytelling instinct that made The Kite Runner a beloved classic, A Thousand Splendid Suns is at once a remarkable chronicle of three decades of Afghan history and a deeply moving account of family and friendship.
It is a striking, heart-wrenching novel of an unforgiving time, an unlikely friendship, and an indestructible love—a stunning accomplishment.
Book Review: A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
This is my second book of Khaled Hosseini . I loved The Kite Runner and this book is also beautifully written and is a masterpiece. The Story telling is perfect and at no moment I feel bored or thought of putting it away.
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini stretches over decades and talks about the Afghan history in which the soviets invaded and the Taliban took over and time after that. The writer makes it easy to picture the areas of Afghanistan and the Afghani culture. The story in this book is told from the perspective of the two women named Mariam and Laila. Both the women with a completely different childhood but fate brought them together.
“One could not count the moons that shimmer on her roofs,
Or the thousand splendid suns that hide behind her walls.”
The characters in A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini are fictional. But the story of the life of Laila and Mariam is too heart breaking and I felt sad for the whole day while reading this. Makes me grateful for the life I am living but saddens me when I think of there are many people out there who still have tragic lives similar to Mariam and Laila.
The writer talks about many important topics such as how the war destroyed lives of so many innocent Afghanis which were forced to go to different countries to find shelter. The rules in the society which restricted the freedom of the women. They violence that they had to endure. Also about the women education in Afghanistan, where they were restricted to go to schools. I loved the character of Laila’s dad who believed and had a dream of educating his daughter.
“A society has no chance of success if its women are uneducated…”
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini involves everything and is very interesting to read but could be quite depressing and sensitive to some readers. Many situations are very upsetting. But for those who are okay with all this then is totally worth it to read it.
