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| Author: Khaled Hosseini
Publisher: Riverhead
Category: Book
List Price: $25.95
Buy Used: $9.73
You Save: $16.22 (63%)
New (103) Used (112) Collectible (38) from $9.73
Avg. Customer Rating:  1250 reviews
Sales Rank: 45
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 384
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.3
Dimensions (in): 9.7 x 6.1 x 1.2
ISBN: 1594489505
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN: 9781594489501
ASIN: 1594489505
Publication Date: May 22, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Condition: **Missing Dustjacket**, Clean, tight, book, has name lined out on title page, shipped FAST in a bubble mailer from a non smoking home
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| Customer Reviews:
 Victim Lit June 5, 2007
14 out of 30 found this review helpful
It is hard to argue with the central premise of this book, which seems to be that it's tough to be a woman in a patriarchal society, especially one torn by war and chaos. And the history of Afghanistan is a tragic one. Agreed.
But after a while I got really tired of the poor pitiful and of course always virtuous heroines pitted against the cruel, brutal and always rotten villains (mostly men). Is life really that black and white? I prefer a novel with a bit more nuance and characters of both genders that are complex and well rounded.
I had the same problem (to a lesser extent) with the Kite Runner. The narrator was an interesting creation but his oh so good and long suffering childhood companion was about as realistic as Tiny Tim.
 A Thousand Splendid Suns indeed! June 4, 2007
3 out of 6 found this review helpful
This book is a beautifully moving story in a real place most of us will never see but about fictious people we wish we could know in this lifetime. A Thousand Splendid Suns moved me to tears more than once and that's not an easy thing to do. I literally had to collect myself before continuing to read and even then I read certain passages over again. The two main characters, Mariam and Laila still haunt me and I finished the book nearly a week ago.
I'm sure if you're reading this review you already know what the book is about so I won't go into all that detail. Suffice it to say, this was a wonderful story told in a way that only Khaled Hosseini could tell it. If you want to know about life in Afghanistan from a woman's point of view read this book. If you want a really good story to grab you and not let go even after you've turned the last page, read this book.
Don't analyze it, just read it for the book it is.
You will not be disappointed.
 as good as the kite runner June 4, 2007
In his follow-up to "The Kite Runner," Khaled Hosseini focuses this time on women's lives under the Taliban, spanning the decades from the sixties to the present. Young Miriam, the illegitimate daughter of a businessman and his housekeeper, grows up isolated longing to be part of her beloved father's family. Instead, a family tragedy forces her into marriage at age fifteen to a Kabul shoemaker, Rasheed, many years her senior, who is abusive and grows more controlling with each year. When he takes a second wife, a young beauty named Laila whose parents also died unexpectedly, the two women are first enemies, and then allies, after the birth of Laila's daughter. Despite their differences in background, the two bond against their husband, and begin to make plans to escape. However, in order to succeed, a heart-wrenching sacrifice will have to be made.
The question many will be wondering is "A Thousand Splendid Suns" as good as "The Kite Runner." My opinion is yes, and it's an excellent book, but it's not any better than the first. The same strengths and weaknesses are apparent. The villains are still one-dimensional, though to be fair a wife batterer is probably as hard to find some compassion for, as the child molesting neo-Nazi in the last book. The reader is never in any doubt of what the author wants him or her to feel at a particular point. However, because the women in the story are so likeable this isn't a real problem. In the end, good does triumph over evil, but it was like the author finally ran out of adversity to throw at the protagonists and needed a tidy way to wrap up the book. Still it's definitely worth a read.
 Disappointed June 4, 2007
10 out of 14 found this review helpful
Kite Runner is a hard act to follow. Unlike Kite Runner, the author uses a female voice here but it does not resonate well and less convincing narration. I didn't like the switch from one character to another and couldn't wait to finish the book to get it over with. There is much here that could have been fantastic, but it could have been improved with editing.
Brilliant... June 4, 2007
2 out of 5 found this review helpful
Not too many books have brought me to tears, but this one certainly did. This is simply one of the most heart breaking, gut wrenching and yet beautiful books I have ever read. The characters of Mariam and Laila will stay with me for a long time.
Afghanistan has always been a place "over there". This book brings it so much closer to home and the plight of the women of Afghanistan will hopefully no longer be ignored because of this brilliant book. A five star recommendation for this one.
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