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siobhanthebookworm_ 's review for:
A Thousand Splendid Suns
by Khaled Hosseini
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
“Like a compass needle that points north, a man’s accusing finger always finds a woman. Always.”
Some books have a way of piercing you straight to your soul, and this book is one of them. This was absolutely phenomenal, and I fear I will struggle to put my thoughts into coherence to write this review. I don't feel it is my place to comment on the experiences and/or representation in this book, but I will say that this book was harrowing in its realism, and incredibly nuanced, enlightening and moving, and I think this is a book everyone should read at least once.
I'm instead going to focus on how this book made me feel, one of its greatest strengths. As I said, this book is deeply harrowing, following the lives of Mariam and Laila, two incredibly strong women, and their horrific experiences and suffering at the hands of men. And yet this book isn't solely focused on their suffering. It is also focused on their gentle bond, the moments of joy in their lives that they savour. It focuses on their ever-enduring strength and courage, their bravery and desperation, and, through it all, their hope. I'm always slightly wary going into books on misogyny and female suffering written by men, but with how much I adored The Kite Runner I trusted Hosseini and, coming out of this book, I think he did an excellent job and approached these two women's stories with great respect and care which shone throughout the book. This is certainly a book I'll never forget, for the experiences I read of, the emotions it made me feel, and how much it moved me. That final line in particular will stay with me for a long time.
I can't say much more or risk avoiding spoilers, but know that I adored this book a great deal. The only thing that held this back from being a five star read was a structural choice. I really like how Hosseini structures his novels, starting with the protagonists' childhoods and backstories and allowing readers to follow along as he builds up the people we learn to love, but I don't think this worked quite as well with two POV characters. We spent much of the first part of the book solely with Mariam as her story was built up, and then switched to Laila to do the same thing, but personally I feel that this took us away from Mariam for too long, and made it a little bit harder to connect to her when their stories finally overlapped and we got both POVs at once. I still adored Mariam as a character and did become connected with her again, but I think interweaving these introductory sections a bit might have worked a little bit better structurally, and the section of the book I enjoyed most was definitely the second half after we got both POVs.
Overall though, I thought this book was absolutely phenomenal, crafted with such respect, and woven through with hope. I highly encourage that every one gives this book ago, even if it isn't your usual genre, though I do recommend checking out the content warnings first.
Some books have a way of piercing you straight to your soul, and this book is one of them. This was absolutely phenomenal, and I fear I will struggle to put my thoughts into coherence to write this review. I don't feel it is my place to comment on the experiences and/or representation in this book, but I will say that this book was harrowing in its realism, and incredibly nuanced, enlightening and moving, and I think this is a book everyone should read at least once.
I'm instead going to focus on how this book made me feel, one of its greatest strengths. As I said, this book is deeply harrowing, following the lives of Mariam and Laila, two incredibly strong women, and their horrific experiences and suffering at the hands of men. And yet this book isn't solely focused on their suffering. It is also focused on their gentle bond, the moments of joy in their lives that they savour. It focuses on their ever-enduring strength and courage, their bravery and desperation, and, through it all, their hope. I'm always slightly wary going into books on misogyny and female suffering written by men, but with how much I adored The Kite Runner I trusted Hosseini and, coming out of this book, I think he did an excellent job and approached these two women's stories with great respect and care which shone throughout the book. This is certainly a book I'll never forget, for the experiences I read of, the emotions it made me feel, and how much it moved me. That final line in particular will stay with me for a long time.
I can't say much more or risk avoiding spoilers, but know that I adored this book a great deal. The only thing that held this back from being a five star read was a structural choice. I really like how Hosseini structures his novels, starting with the protagonists' childhoods and backstories and allowing readers to follow along as he builds up the people we learn to love, but I don't think this worked quite as well with two POV characters. We spent much of the first part of the book solely with Mariam as her story was built up, and then switched to Laila to do the same thing, but personally I feel that this took us away from Mariam for too long, and made it a little bit harder to connect to her when their stories finally overlapped and we got both POVs at once. I still adored Mariam as a character and did become connected with her again, but I think interweaving these introductory sections a bit might have worked a little bit better structurally, and the section of the book I enjoyed most was definitely the second half after we got both POVs.
Overall though, I thought this book was absolutely phenomenal, crafted with such respect, and woven through with hope. I highly encourage that every one gives this book ago, even if it isn't your usual genre, though I do recommend checking out the content warnings first.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Violence, War
Moderate: Child abuse, Suicide, Medical content, Pregnancy
Minor: Ableism