Khaled Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns follows the lives of two women, Mariam and Laila, during a thirty year period in Afghanistan’s history. The novel starts by telling the story of Mariam’s youth, then Laila’s, and finally the friendship that is born when their lives intertwine due to unfortunate circumstances. Whereas Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner was a masculine story, dealing with themes of redemption, courage, and fatherhood, A Thousand Splendid Suns is a story about women. We witness the burden of shame upon Mariam’s mother, who became pregnant out of wedlock, and the bitterness she harbors against the world when she is outcast by her wealthy lover and disowned by her father. Her own powerlessness and suffering translate into a strained relationship with her daughter, whom she makes feel unwanted and unloved. However, Mariam does not begin to understand her mother until her own father rejects her, not wanting to be seen with his bastard child. Unfortunate events eventually force fifteen year old Mariam to marry forty year old Rasheed, who whittles her down slowly with insults and physical violence. It is not until fourteen year old Laila, Rasheed’s second bride, enters her life that Mariam gains purpose and courage. Through their friendship, Laila and Mariam find peace in violence, solace in chaos, and life in death. The bond created by womanhood and grief allows them to fill the holes in each others’ lives.
Through descriptions of his home country’s history, its landscape, and its traditions, Hosseini also creates a sense of regret and grief that helps readers feel the loss experienced by the characters. Hakim, Laila’s father and a lover of history, takes his daughter to visit the Bamiyan Buddhas. As he details the history of the Buddhas, he speaks of his hopes and dreams for his family. The Buddhas represent his deep appreciation for his culture and land, demonstrating the richness of Afghani culture and the history that connects all of its people. The scene is poignant and beautiful, and makes it all the more devastating when the statues are destroyed. The erasure of something that connected so many people, something that was quite literally etched into their land, creates a keen sense of a loss of humanity. Even without Afghani heritage, readers can grieve with the characters.
This novel was emotional and captured my attention entirely. I ended up reading the entire book in a single weekend because I was so invested in the characters’ stories. For anyone looking for a book they will not be able to put down, I recommend A Thousand Splendid Suns.