A Thousand Splendid Suns
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4.7 • 2.4K Ratings
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
Propelled by the same superb instinct for storytelling that made The Kite Runner a beloved classic, the #1 New York Times bestseller A Thousand Splendid Suns is at once an incredible chronicle of thirty years of Afghan history and a deeply moving story of family, friendship, faith, and the salvation to be found in love.
“Just as good, if not better, than Khaled Hosseini’s best-selling first book, The Kite Runner.”—Newsweek
Khaled Hosseini returns with a beautiful, riveting, and haunting novel that confirms his place as one of the most important literary writers today.
Born a generation apart and with very different ideas about love and family, Mariam and Laila are two women brought jarringly together by war, by loss and by fate. As they endure the ever escalating dangers around them-in their home as well as in the streets of Kabul-they come to form a bond that makes them both sisters and mother-daughter to each other, and that will ultimately alter the course not just of their own lives but of the next generation. With heart-wrenching power and suspense, Hosseini shows how a woman's love for her family can move her to shocking and heroic acts of self-sacrifice, and that in the end it is love, or even the memory of love, that is often the key to survival.
A stunning accomplishment, A Thousand Splendid Suns is a haunting, heartbreaking, compelling story of an unforgiving time, an unlikely friendship, and an indestructible love.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Khaled Hosseini followed up the breakout success of 2003’s The Kite Runner with another deeply affecting novel set in Taliban-era Afghanistan. A Thousand Splendid Suns addresses the country’s traditions, hardships, and endemic gender inequality through the eyes of two female protagonists. Raised in very different circumstances a generation apart, Mariam and Laila are both married to abusive, polygamous shoemaker Rasheed. Though their early relationship is contentious, the women end up forming a powerful and improbable friendship. Their bond gives Hosseini’s often bleak and war-weary tale a sense of optimism that left a lump in our throat.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Atossa Leoni, who is German-born of Afghan ancestry, was clearly chosen because she can pronounce all the Afghan words a big plus, but it's the only plus in this bad reading. Dropping her voice on the last word of every sentence, her phrasing is regularly rendered ungrammatical by breaks at the wrong points. Her narrow vocal range makes for a dull and often difficult listening experience. Despite the reader, the book holds the listener thanks to Hosseini's riveting story an in-depth exploration of Afghan society in the three decades of anti-Soviet jihad, civil war and Taliban cruelty. He impels us to empathize with and admire those most victimized by Afghan history and culture women. Mariam, a 15-year-old bastard whose mother commits suicide, is married off to 40-year-old Rasheed, who abuses her brutally, especially after she has several miscarriages. At 60, Rasheed takes in 14-year-old Laila, whose parents were blown up by stray bombs. He soon turns violent with her. Although Laila is united with her childhood beloved, the potential return of the Taliban always shadows their happiness. Simultaneous release with the Riverhead hardcover (Reviews, Feb. 26).
Customer Reviews
Awesome
Received this book for my birthday and it was amazing! You felt the anger the love the hurt the pain of all the characters. I loved every part of it! I would recommend it to anyone!
So Good
I could not stop reading this book . It was really good. Every ending to a chapter just kept me suspenseful and I needed to read more. Very good book has a lot of drama, action, and imagery. I would highly recommend it.
Amazing
This is a must read book! It will make you sad and happy at the same time. It makes you think about the kind of society that women live in this country and the society that women live in Afghanistan. I recommend it!