A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

“Learn this now and learn it well. Like a compass facing north, a man’s accusing finger always finds a woman. Always.”

A beautiful tale of sacrifice, endurance, and love; this book is one I have recommended to people since I first read it at fourteen, and will continue to recommend in the years to come. A Thousand Splendid Suns follows Mariam and Laila, two women whose lives intertwine after tragic circumstances leave them forced to share a cruel husband, Rasheed. Set against the backdrop of Afghanistan’s political turmoil, A Thousand Splendid Suns chronicles abuse, societal shame, and the oppression of women under the Taliban’s regime.

I believe this to be a novel that anyone would have great difficulty not becoming emotionally entangled with. The dialogue between Mariam and Laila is so profoundly synchronised with women’s emotional intimacy that it remains difficult to remember that the author is male, and yet, Hosseini writes as if fluent in the language of femininity.

Hosseini details the aching agony of war through the narratives of two women stripped of their agency, and, with his commendable knack for creating utter immersion, enables an entirely humbling, heart-breaking experience. Ultimately, A Thousand Splendid Suns achieves what many writers aspire (and fail) to attain: a world in which you are not only observing a story, but one in which you feel bound to yourself.

Easily one of the most treasured books on my shelf, I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a touching piece of literature (and perhaps a good cry).

“A man's heart is a wretched, wretched thing. It isn't like a mother's womb. It won't bleed. It won't stretch to make room for you.”