"A Thousand splendid suns"- a moving read
Any new mom will tell you that reading a book, a magazine or even the TV guide is a luxury that you have to forego the first couple of months, especially if you happen to have a little one with Colic. Needless to say, I never got to do much reading last year. So, I decided at the beginning of this year that things will be different . Now that we have safely crossed over the 1 year-threshold with my daughter: I Will Read.
I want to share a passage from Khaled Hosseini's beautifully penned book, A thousand Splendid suns.
"The streets became littered with bodies, glass, and crumpled chunks of metal. there was looting , murder, and, increasingly, rape, which was used to intimidate civilians and reward militia men. Miriam (One of the main characters; whose story of pain, loss and suffering is so heartbreaking it will move, even the most cynical of readers, close to tears) heard of women who were killing themselves out of fear of being raped, and men who, in the name of honour, would kill their wives or daughters if they'd been raped by the militia..."(pg 247)
Besides this book being superbly written, it is also thought-provoking and sad. What made me especially sad was to read about the plight of women in Kabul during the period on which the book is based; a tumultous time in the country's history, when they were struggling to find a governing system that would strike the perfect and delicate balance between the letter of the law and religion.
The above-mentioned passage is just one of the many passages in the book that stood out for me, because it always confounds me to hear or read about the unspeakable acts of cruelty and hatred that we humans are capable of committing against each other. We see this in our own society as well, heinous acts committed against the women we call Mother, sister and friend.
I have always believed that women have an important role to play; not only in the raising of our future leaders, but also very practically in the corridors of power and influence. I guess thats why it was inspiring for me to follow the entangled stories of the two women in Hosseini's book. Their journeys of pain, growth, companionship and tribulation, are proof that we can overcome insurmountable odds when we have no choice but to survive.
This is a stunning book about, amongst other things, the triumph of the human spirit.
I want to share a passage from Khaled Hosseini's beautifully penned book, A thousand Splendid suns.
"The streets became littered with bodies, glass, and crumpled chunks of metal. there was looting , murder, and, increasingly, rape, which was used to intimidate civilians and reward militia men. Miriam (One of the main characters; whose story of pain, loss and suffering is so heartbreaking it will move, even the most cynical of readers, close to tears) heard of women who were killing themselves out of fear of being raped, and men who, in the name of honour, would kill their wives or daughters if they'd been raped by the militia..."(pg 247)
Besides this book being superbly written, it is also thought-provoking and sad. What made me especially sad was to read about the plight of women in Kabul during the period on which the book is based; a tumultous time in the country's history, when they were struggling to find a governing system that would strike the perfect and delicate balance between the letter of the law and religion.
The above-mentioned passage is just one of the many passages in the book that stood out for me, because it always confounds me to hear or read about the unspeakable acts of cruelty and hatred that we humans are capable of committing against each other. We see this in our own society as well, heinous acts committed against the women we call Mother, sister and friend.
I have always believed that women have an important role to play; not only in the raising of our future leaders, but also very practically in the corridors of power and influence. I guess thats why it was inspiring for me to follow the entangled stories of the two women in Hosseini's book. Their journeys of pain, growth, companionship and tribulation, are proof that we can overcome insurmountable odds when we have no choice but to survive.
This is a stunning book about, amongst other things, the triumph of the human spirit.
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