“A Thousand Splendid Suns,” by Khaled Hosseini

Atif Khan's ratings:

1.      Premise 9.5

2.      Prose 8.5

3.      Plot 9

4.      Characters 8.5

5.      Overall 8.5

Comments (optional - but try to keep it under 3000 words!)

The book is awesome. I wept a bit while reading because few situations were very hard to imagine, made me more than nostalgic. It's a story of how miserable life women had lived in Afghanistan. The hardship of lives of women. Their sacrifice towards their children. Problems due to male dominance. But in the end, it shows everyone is not same whether entire race, caste, creed, communities and sex. It also shows a beautiful love story and the bond and relationship shared by two women. Moral: Love never dies.

FM's ratings:

1.      Premise 8

2.      Prose 7

3.      Plot 8

4.      Characters 9

5.      Overall 8

Comments (optional - but try to keep it under 3000 words!)

The premise, as Atif describes it – the hardship of life for women in Afghanistan, (especially in wartime) – is the primary feature here, and the treatment is superb.  It’s a difficult premise upon which to base a novel; important as it is, the “entertainment value” is all but dispensed with.  This is made up for by superb characterization in my opinion, though Atif rates that somewhat lower than the other areas.  And if you like your fiction reading to be relevant to real issues and with historical significance, you can’t do better than this novel.  We both rated the prose lowest (though still relatively high) because, I think, it reads as if it was written by an author for whom English is not the primary language … which is exactly the case, of course!  But with that in mind, the prose is rather well done.  Overall, the “8” rating means I recommend it, with reservations for those who like lighter, happier reading.  The harsh realities of this narrative do indeed bring tears, as Atif points out, to anyone who cares about equality and peace in this world.  Thank you, Atif, for recommending this book!

Here’s the December line-up! 

“The Naming of the Dead,” by Ian Rankin [12-3-16]

“Six Geese A-Slaying,” by Donna Andrews [12-10-16]

“Twelve Drummers Drumming,” by C. C. Benison [12-17-16]

“A Highland Christmas,” by M. C. Beaton [12-24-16]
“The Christmas Train,” by David Baldacci [12-31-16]

(As always, if there are any books you’d like to recommend for next month, please do so.  Also, if you have already read one on our previous lists, you are invited to send your ratings and or comments for that book!)