“A Thousand Splendid Suns” by Khaled Hosseini – The Flowers of War
I find that in the present day, there is a distinct lack of Middle Eastern literature... and I’m not just talking about novels that take place in that exotic part of the world. I’m talking about books written by people who can give first-hand accounts of what life and certain historical events were/are like...
I’m talking about authentic books in which authors know well both the beauty and ugliness of it all. By chance, I happened to stumble across A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini, an Afghan-born novelist and physician.
In his book, Hosseini tells us the life of two young women who are caught in the midst of the Afghan War, covering more than thirty years of history. Without focusing too much on the politics of the war, the author takes much greater care in telling us the lives of these two women, Mariam and Laila, how they and their families are affected by the conflict around them. It’s about how they manage to endure all the increasingly-deadly hardships they face, all while never losing their senses of love and compassion, without ever losing their humanity.
I have to say that the author has a real talent when it comes to giving eye-catching and jaw-dropping descriptions; the scenery is so well set that you only need to close your eyes to actually find yourself there. The characters are all consistent, and it’s a bit of a breath of fresh air to see Middle Eastern characters depicted without any good/bad role associated with them... they are shown as they are: people just like everywhere else on the planet.
In his book, Hosseini tells us the life of two young women who are caught in the midst of the Afghan War, covering more than thirty years of history. Without focusing too much on the politics of the war, the author takes much greater care in telling us the lives of these two women, Mariam and Laila, how they and their families are affected by the conflict around them. It’s about how they manage to endure all the increasingly-deadly hardships they face, all while never losing their senses of love and compassion, without ever losing their humanity.
I have to say that the author has a real talent when it comes to giving eye-catching and jaw-dropping descriptions; the scenery is so well set that you only need to close your eyes to actually find yourself there. The characters are all consistent, and it’s a bit of a breath of fresh air to see Middle Eastern characters depicted without any good/bad role associated with them... they are shown as they are: people just like everywhere else on the planet.
As far as the story goes, it isn’t for the faint of heart. Regardless of how many beautiful things the characters may teach us, the context is still that of a war, and part of what makes the story move forward are the hardships suffered by the two girls and their families.
People are brutally murdered, kidnapped, and sometimes forced to survive in horrifying conditions. Nevertheless, it manages to remain inspiring, demonstrating that in the name of love and family, nothing can stop the human spirit from achieving its goal, or at least, leave this world in dignity.
 | Khaled HosseiniPersonal site Khaled Hosseini is an American novelist of Afghan origin, as well as a physician, though he likened that occupation to an arranged marriage. In 2003 Hosseini published his first book, The Kite Runner, and never looked back with the tremendous success it brought him. |
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