A Thousand Splendid Suns

By: Khaled Hosseini

Narrated by: Atossa Leoni

Length: 11 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's summary

Propelled by the same superb instinct for storytelling that made The Kite Runner a beloved classic, A Thousand Splendid Suns is at once an incredible chronicle of 30 years of Afghanistan history and a deeply moving story of family, friendship, faith, and the salvation to be found in love.

Born a generation apart and with very different ideas about love and family, Mariam and Laila are two women brought jarringly together by war, by loss, and by fate. As they endure the ever-escalating dangers around them, in their home as well as in the streets of Kabul, they come to form a bond that makes them both sisters and mother-daughter to each other, and that will ultimately alter the course not just of their own lives but of the next generation. With heart-wrenching power and suspense, Hosseini shows how a woman's love for her family can move her to shocking and heroic acts of self-sacrifice, and that in the end it is love, or even the memory of love, that is often the key to survival.

A stunning accomplishment, A Thousand Splendid Suns is a haunting, heartbreaking, compelling story of an unforgiving time, an unlikely friendship, and an indestructible love.

©2007 TKR Publications, LLC. All rights reserved (P)2007 Simon and Schuster Inc. All rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"Another searing epic....[Hosseini's] tale is a powerful, harrowing depiction of Afghanistan, but also a lyrical evocation of the lives and enduring hopes of its resilient characters." (Publishers Weekly)
"Unimaginably tragic, Hosseini's magnificent second novel is a sad and beautiful testament to both Afghani suffering and strength. Readers who lost themselves in The Kite Runner will not want to miss this unforgettable follow up." (Booklist)

Changing the perspective

I had to read this for school, and that fact alone made the book worse, but it was a book that everybody should read. Everyone should read this, but I don’t think I should be tested on parts of this book. It should be read to interpret on somebody’s own, and not forced to.

Compelling insights into Afghan culture & history

Enjoyed thoroughly. An engaging story of three generations of women, their hardships and their endearing loved ones.

Voiceless but strong

Loved it. It was sad and maddening but hard to stop reading. Good insight into the life of a woman in this part of the world.

A magnificent telling of war. love and regret

When this novel was first published I read it with astonishment not imagining how powerful an audio version could be.The publishers have tastefully intermixed voices with a brief selection of piercing of music to wrap around any loose threads.How can we not weep for MaryAnn whose sacrifice is great allowing for the others to survive. The author shares his remarkable gift with us.. I await his next novel with eager anticipation.
LK

great book

It was a really great book that I enjoyed greatly. At first, I thought reading from two point of views was difficult to understand, but A thousand splendid suns countered my expectations about these types of books. Great storyline and Characters

Powerful and tear-jerking ending

i end up crying for a while after reading this book. it's powerful and moving.

Gripping history

A history we should study in the west. This historical fiction told from a personal history and viewpoint is a most gripping way to etch this part of our world into western consciousness, It compels the reader to closely follow current events, knowing that some of the tragedy is still being relived. We must ask ourselves what is to be done and what must each of us do for a more just world?

Such a touching story.

Wonderful sense of a culture not readily realized by the west. I was mesmerized. good listen.

Well written

This story takes one into the war stricken Afghan community of the late nineties and early two thousands. The story allowed me to cry with the characters, pray with them, fear with them and laugh with them. It is a story that I will never forget, and it is one of those books that I wished would never end.

bittery sweet

beatiful story with painful reality. some part i had to skip becouse the domestic vioence was too brutal.