By Roni Roseberg
An avid reader, I was definitely ready to immerse myself in my next find: “A Thousand Splendid Suns” by Afghan-American author Khaled Hosseini.
Having read and savoured his previous work The Kite Runner some years ago, I knew any subsequent books by this author would be good. And indeed, this one is.
For me, I cannot separate the stories Hosseini weaves from my experience with many Afghan students who I taught during the 1980’s in the San Francisco Bay Area city of Hayward, California (USA).
Then living as refugees fleeing conflict, their stories have stuck in my mind and forged deep, happy and fond memories.
From 1979 to 1989 Russia invaded Afghanistan. Thousands of refugees came to the United States and other countries in order to save their lives.
I taught English as a second language to adults who came to our California city.
They left an indelible mark on me. What I remember most is their resilience, warm sense of humour, and positive attitude, even though they didn’t know where they’d be in the future.
They missed their country and their loved ones terribly. They had little money but always brought food to share. We had some wonderful meals together.
Hosseini undertook a difficult task: he had two women as main characters in “A Thousand Splendid Suns”.
One, though younger, is more worldly and has felt true love. The other has led a sequestered, joyless existence.
The book tracks their lives, and is clearly dedicated to long-suffering women who, for cultural and historical reasons, have lived under a heavy yoke of oppression.
They are often locked into arranged marriages, and find themselves at the mercies of strict husbands and governments. Hosseini’s characters therefore bear the scars of people whose whole lives are controlled.
These two main characters do not like each other at first, but painstakingly, they begin to defend each other. They slowly develop a friendship as they fight to survive hardships and deadly rocket attacks while protecting the children.
Although at one time, women in the capital of Kabul went to university and held professional jobs, and had much greater freedoms than today, these were taken away by traditional governments on pain of death.
Post-Taliban takeover, such advancements are absent today – and were at the time of Hossein’s story, with Afghani women’s fates seemingly determined for them.
We, as readers, are however spellbound by the characters’ resilience and refusal to give up hope.
As a feminist, I greatly respect Hosseini. The issues he illuminates are both particular to his home country and human rights in general.
“A Thousand Splendid Suns” is therefore definitely worth a read – as are Hosseini’s other works. Without a shadow of a doubt.
Through Hosseini. we can appreciate the resilience, strength and courage of millions of Afghani men and women and gain a small insight into their world.
I look forward to reading his other books. They of course offer plenty to discover.
Tashakor (thank you) Mr. Hosseini for raising our consciousness.
