Sample

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

And the Mountains Echoed

By: Khaled Hosseini
Narrated by: Khaled Hosseini, Navid Negahban, Shohreh Aghdashloo
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $21.60

Buy for $21.60

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Editorial reviews

Editors Select, May 2013 - When it’s been six years since a best-selling author’s last book, there is a heightened sense of anticipation and high expectations surrounding that next new release. And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini is the perfect example of this, and does not disappoint. An expansive family saga, both modern and mythic, the story begins in a small Afghan town in the 1950s and follows one family through time and across the globe to France, California, and Greece. While there is a broad sweeping sense of the effect of one generation on the next, it’s the personal relationships between siblings that I found the most memorable; in particular how Abdullah, a 10-year-old boy, becomes the caretaker to his three-year-old sister, Pari, and does so with love, skill, and absolutely no hesitation or resentment. Their forced separation is the catalyst that creates the conflict and momentum that propels the story beyond Afghanistan and into the larger world. I look forward to the audio (including the author’s narration) and then to Hosseini’s next book, regardless of when that may be. Tricia, Audible Editor

Publisher's summary

On May 21, 2013, the new novel from Khaled Hosseini: an unforgettable story about finding a lost piece of yourself in someone else.

Khaled Hosseini, the number-one New York Times best-selling author of The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns, has written a new novel about how we love, how we take care of one another, and how the choices we make resonate through generations. In this tale revolving around not just parents and children but brothers and sisters, cousins and caretakers, Hosseini explores the many ways in which families nurture, wound, betray, honor, and sacrifice for one another; and how often we are surprised by the actions of those closest to us, at the times that matter most. Following its characters and the ramifications of their lives and choices and loves around the globe—from Kabul to Paris to San Francisco to the Greek island of Tinos—the story expands gradually outward, becoming more emotionally complex and powerful with each passing minute.

©2013 Khaled Hosseini (P)2013 Penguin Audio

What listeners say about And the Mountains Echoed

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2,961
  • 4 Stars
    1,568
  • 3 Stars
    859
  • 2 Stars
    254
  • 1 Stars
    152
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2,729
  • 4 Stars
    1,284
  • 3 Stars
    683
  • 2 Stars
    230
  • 1 Stars
    197
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2,752
  • 4 Stars
    1,308
  • 3 Stars
    719
  • 2 Stars
    205
  • 1 Stars
    123

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Amazing story!

Loved listening to this beautiful story of lives woven through tragedy over generations. Hosseini is such a creative story teller.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Best Story Line with Intertwining Stories

Would you listen to And the Mountains Echoed again? Why?

One of the best books I've read in long time. The way the characters overlap and intertwine is a magical mystery and journey throughout the lifetime of one little girl and how one event can trigger a lifetime of consequences. The two narrators including the author and two well known Iranian actors living in the US makes this book come more to life than if had read it Although I did listen to it twice to connect all the dots so to speak.... and it connects well. They way each chapter sums up then has a musical interlude and a lesson is learned or the chapter summed up in a wonderful way. Don't miss this book if you like reading about families, feelings and consequences.

What other book might you compare And the Mountains Echoed to and why?

I know this may seem strange but the movie "Pulp Fiction" comes to mind only in the way that the characters overlap and you learn more about them in later chapters, making this book somewhat of a mystery.

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No, yet excellent performances. Love that the author is one of the narrators.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

When Pari the long lost sister of Abdullah meets and visits with Pari the daughter of Abdullah, her niece yet more her sister..

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Story by vignette

Any additional comments?

Hosseini used a series of vignettes to tell his story as compared to a contiguous plot. His approach is different than previous novels, but absolutely effective. It allowed a quick but deep look at a number of characters and situations that are intertwined and impacted by each other. It is a story of choices, of responsibility and love, of self-sacrifice and self-centeredness, of isolation and connection. At the beginning of some chapters I had difficulty getting my bearings, but Hosseini quickly provided enough information for me to gain understanding. I was propelled through the stories in this book, and touched by how intertwined the characters were at the beginning and the end. A very good read.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great story Not so great narrating

If you could sum up And the Mountains Echoed in three words, what would they be?

Amazing, Great story, shocking!!

What other book might you compare And the Mountains Echoed to and why?

Not sure.

What three words best describe the narrators’s performance?

The male narrator is easier to follow than the female. No offense to the female narrator but the accent makes it hard to follow at times.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes and no depending on the narrators.

Any additional comments?

I am listening to the book on my way to work and I really get into it to the point I sit in my car for an extra few minutes to finish the section I am in. The flow of the book is not straight forward but it does leave hints in place to connect the dots at a later time. The author swings back and forth in time and various characters come in and go as other people mentioned. The narrators in the audible version change and some of them are harder to follow than others. Overall excellent story.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Tricky & messy, but worth the read!

A multi-generational set of stories that, alone, may seem emotionally messy or twisted. Once they have all been linked, one realized the beauty, charge & simplicity in each character's life. Quite magical!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Echoed...

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I found this book a little hard to get into however, the longer I listened the more the stories echoed in my ears and heart. I fell in love with it.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Pari~ She captured my imagination.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Beautiful Storytelling

Khaled Hosseini creates an intricate tapestry of interconnected stories and experiences, revealing a single perspective to the reader in each chapter and masterfully weaving all together with insight and poignancy.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Awesome story

Any additional comments?

I did not want to finish this book. I had read his two previous ones and knew it would be the work of a genuine storyteller unlike any I'd ever heard. Loved the readers; they gave it authenticity and feeling. Don't rush through this; it's real people and real life.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A Breathtaking, Multigenerational Story

What did you like best about this story?

I loved how the story spanned generations and linked characters across time. I also really enjoyed the incorporation of local Afghan folklore - fable-like stories that paralleled the characters' own lives.

Would you listen to another book narrated by the narrators?

I would. Initially, I had trouble with Shohreh's and Navid's accents as they affect the way I heard certain words. I wouldn't necessarily recommend this narration for listeners who have hearing difficulties.

Any additional comments?

Another stunning novel from Khaled Hosseini that takes the reader on a long and winding journey over decades, across landscapes, and in and out of the lives of extraordinary individuals.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Worth a read but not my favorite Hosseini offering

Any additional comments?

And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini was not all that I hoped it to be...it was good, don't misunderstand, but the other two were better and The Kite Runner is still my favorite.This one is mercifully less graphic than the other two. I say "mercifully" not because the author was ever harsh for harshness sake. Quite the contrary, I have always found his harder scenes appropriate. I am just a bit weak natured when it comes to those things. FYI there are a lot of reviews criticizing the accents in the narration. It is thick at some points, but I really liked it. It gave an authenticity to the read and added a deeper level of connection for me at least.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!