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3.55 AVERAGE
3.55 AVERAGE
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
challenging
I wanna say i hated it but i didnt? It did make me angry at times but considering that it is non fiction and is told from the perspective of an outsider, i dont think i expected much better
was toying between 3 and 4 stars for this, in my head it’s 3.5
perhaps because of my limited exposure to books written around the taliban period of afghanistan and centring in kabul (i’m sure there are many) i can’t help but compare this to Khaled Hosseini (KR + TSS). it’s interesting because i didn’t get the love for the place and people and culture from Seierstad as i did from Hosseini and that made it less enjoyable BUT i do think her personal experience as a westerner mixing with these women and sharing some of their experiences, navigating life in a burka for one, is also valuable.
i do understand the criticisms but i think those angry at Seierstad’s portrayal of life for women in afghanistan are more worried about seeming narrow minded or intolerant than they are about human women living in an oppressive and patriarchal culture. it’s obvious afghani culture is full of beauty and light and history, and full of people who love their country, want the best for their women and children and disagree with regimes that have caused and encouraged violence and oppression. this doesn’t change the fact that life for men and (particularly) women is different than that in the west. women (and a lot of men) in general have fewer choices, less access to education and live more constrained lives and it is perfectly reasonable to be critical of this! as should be obvious, there are many afghani people that feel the same.
perhaps because of my limited exposure to books written around the taliban period of afghanistan and centring in kabul (i’m sure there are many) i can’t help but compare this to Khaled Hosseini (KR + TSS). it’s interesting because i didn’t get the love for the place and people and culture from Seierstad as i did from Hosseini and that made it less enjoyable BUT i do think her personal experience as a westerner mixing with these women and sharing some of their experiences, navigating life in a burka for one, is also valuable.
i do understand the criticisms but i think those angry at Seierstad’s portrayal of life for women in afghanistan are more worried about seeming narrow minded or intolerant than they are about human women living in an oppressive and patriarchal culture. it’s obvious afghani culture is full of beauty and light and history, and full of people who love their country, want the best for their women and children and disagree with regimes that have caused and encouraged violence and oppression. this doesn’t change the fact that life for men and (particularly) women is different than that in the west. women (and a lot of men) in general have fewer choices, less access to education and live more constrained lives and it is perfectly reasonable to be critical of this! as should be obvious, there are many afghani people that feel the same.
adventurous
emotional
informative
sad
tense
fast-paced
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Child abuse, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Incest, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual violence, Torture, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
This book was really popular awhile ago and I bought it at a used bookstore, but I didn't actually get around to reading it until my book group read it recently.
It has a promising start. A bookseller is trying to protect books and the literature of his people while they are in great peril. An interested journalist befriends the man and is invited to stay in his home. The said Western journalist writes a book about the bookseller's family members and the work and family dynamic in Afghanistan which does not cast it in a very positive light.
The bookseller was incensed at the content of the book and tried to sue the author and then wrote his own book, "There Once was a Bookseller in Kabul."
Initially, I was committed to reading both books and seeing the Bookseller's side of the story. Maybe one day I will, but for the moment, I don't feel like supporting him.
The writing itself of the book was fine. However, the subject matter, mostly the situation of the female family members was so frustrating that I really found it difficult to finish this book. I know that many of the examples are pervasive in society in Afghanistan, but reading specifically about individuals made it all the more painful. It made me sad for the circumstances of many women in Afghanistan. Also, I detested the bookseller by the end which is why I simply can't bring myself to buy his counter book, especially when I read his synopsis on the back that made it sound like he was seething with anger when he wrote it.
It has a promising start. A bookseller is trying to protect books and the literature of his people while they are in great peril. An interested journalist befriends the man and is invited to stay in his home. The said Western journalist writes a book about the bookseller's family members and the work and family dynamic in Afghanistan which does not cast it in a very positive light.
The bookseller was incensed at the content of the book and tried to sue the author and then wrote his own book, "There Once was a Bookseller in Kabul."
Initially, I was committed to reading both books and seeing the Bookseller's side of the story. Maybe one day I will, but for the moment, I don't feel like supporting him.
The writing itself of the book was fine. However, the subject matter, mostly the situation of the female family members was so frustrating that I really found it difficult to finish this book. I know that many of the examples are pervasive in society in Afghanistan, but reading specifically about individuals made it all the more painful. It made me sad for the circumstances of many women in Afghanistan. Also, I detested the bookseller by the end which is why I simply can't bring myself to buy his counter book, especially when I read his synopsis on the back that made it sound like he was seething with anger when he wrote it.
challenging
emotional
informative
medium-paced
challenging
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced