A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

A Thousand Splendid Suns

by Khaled Hosseini

THE RICHARD & JUDY NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER

‘A suspenseful epic’ Daily Telegraph

‘A triumph’ Financial Times

‘Heartbreaking’ Mail on Sunday

‘Deeply moving’ Sunday Times


Mariam is only fifteen when she is sent to Kabul to marry Rasheed. Nearly two decades later, a friendship grows between Mariam and a local teenager, Laila, as strong as the ties between mother and daughter. When the Taliban take over, life becomes a desperate struggle against starvation, brutality and fear. Yet love can move a person to act in unexpected ways, and lead them to overcome the most daunting obstacles with a startling heroism.

Reviewed by Whitney @ First Impressions Reviews on

5 of 5 stars

Share
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.

I picked this up at my most resent visit to the library and was excited that it wasn't checked out for once. As this was considered a "new release" at the library I could only check it out for a week and at first was worried that I wouldn't be able to finish it in time. Those thoughts where soon pushed out of my mind as I began reading A Thousand Splendid Suns as it warped me into Afghanistan and into the lives of Mariam and Laila.

As soon as I became engrossed in Mariam's story, which got me hooked on page one; I was transferred to Laila's journey. In Mariam's part I was spellbound and couldn't believe all the hardships Mariam faced; how much can one person handle? I was foolish enough to think that Laila would have a happy life with Tariq and was heartbroken when I learned that he was killed while trying to escape from the war. And was shocked when he returned toward the end of the book; at first I thought he might be a phony, but after learning that Rasheed had paid someone to lie about her love's death in order to trap her; I was relieved and happy that they would be able to be together after so many years of separation.

After Rasheed's death I thought it was very honorable that Mariam choose to risk her life, and take the blame for his "murder" in order for Laila, Tariq and her children to have a life together. The ending, with Laila revisiting Mariam's childhood home and walking through her past was a wonderful closing to A Thousand Splendid Suns, bringing closure to the characters and the reader.

Last modified on

Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 9 October, 2007: Finished reading
  • 9 October, 2007: Reviewed