Turtle book of the month club
So this time it's a twofer! I've recently read both The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini, with thanks to my father in-law for giving them to me for my birthday. They are both fantastic. I am immensely grateful for the new insight I have into the lives and cultures of the many peoples of Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan. I think Hosseini did a fantastic job of painting a human face on the Afghan world in a manner that can hopefully help diffuse the myths and preconceived ideas about Afghanis, Persians, Pakistanis, Hindis, Islam, and much more.
A Thousand Splendid Suns is much more graphic and gritty than The Kite Runner, but they both powerfully drive home the personal and cultural struggles of the people we now both attempt to befriend and manipulate. This part of the world has been a doormat for foreign forces since the beginning of recorded history - starting with the Mongols, then Greeks, Crusaders, Arabs, British, Soviets, Taliban, and us, just to name a few. The current population remembers nearly nothing of their country but war, occupation, sacrifice, and suffering. The books, though fictional, help show of how this came to be, and perhaps what is in store for the future.
I give them four enthusiastic thumbs up. (Two for each book. Come on, I'm not a freak!)
A Thousand Splendid Suns is much more graphic and gritty than The Kite Runner, but they both powerfully drive home the personal and cultural struggles of the people we now both attempt to befriend and manipulate. This part of the world has been a doormat for foreign forces since the beginning of recorded history - starting with the Mongols, then Greeks, Crusaders, Arabs, British, Soviets, Taliban, and us, just to name a few. The current population remembers nearly nothing of their country but war, occupation, sacrifice, and suffering. The books, though fictional, help show of how this came to be, and perhaps what is in store for the future.
I give them four enthusiastic thumbs up. (Two for each book. Come on, I'm not a freak!)
posted by RebTurtle at
11:27 PM
4 Comments:
I loved the Kite Runner, but it broke my heart. I cried a lot throughout that book. Mostly because when we went to Pakistan every summer as I was growing up, we would visit areas where a lot of Afghani refugees lived. There so many children. So many. Throughout that book, I kept thinking about those kids... wondering about their stories and how similar they might have been. I also felt a lot of anger as I read it.
That's one of the reasons I haven't read A Thousand Splendid Suns, yet. He's a wonderful writer, but I just don't think I have the emotional fortitude to read it right now.
By
Faiqa, At
November 8, 2009 at 12:11 PM
I would definitely brace yourself for it. Where The Kite Runner tells the story of those who escaped, A Thousand Splendid Suns tells the story of those who stayed and endured. It is even more of a roller coaster, but fantastic just the same.
By
RebTurtle, At
November 8, 2009 at 4:00 PM
I haven't read A Thousand Splendid Suns, but loved The Kite Runner.
By
Michelle Panik, At
November 9, 2009 at 3:12 PM
*poke* *poke*
Happy New Year!
By
Chickie, At
January 1, 2010 at 10:12 AM
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