It is official: Every young girl in America should have to read A Thousand Splendid Suns. I'll admit I was skeptical in the beginning. I know very little about Afghanistan, and the image that came to mind when I thought of women there was a sad figure in full burqa. Thank God for Women in Lit (I'm not really in the mood to thank my English teacher). There are many pros to A Thousand Splendid Suns. Hosseini is an amazing story teller. He weaves together Mariam and Lalia's stories as seamlessly as some weave fabric. His prose is simple but beautiful, and the smallest details make your chest clench. It is clear Hosseini knows his topic. The history of Afghanistan is a little hard to follow at time (it's mostly the names), but you understand enough to know this is a country that has not seen peace in years. It was interesting to see Bush and the U.S.'s stance on Afghanistan through the eyes of the citizens there.

What really made me love A Thousand Splendid Suns, however, were the women at the center of the story: Mariam and Lalia. Life is often very cruel to the both of them. Mariam is born a bastard and is forced into marriage to a very unpleasant man by her father when she is fifteen. Lalia loses her parents to an air raid, and she is separated from her love Tariq and presumes him to be dead many years. These two women have little in common at first, but they grow to be each others only ally and friend in an abusive household. These aren't the take charge kind of women in American fiction, but there is a quiet strength and resilience to both women I admire. They just keep going and surviving even when everything goes to hell. I wish I could have half the courage Lalia and Mariam have.

I've recommended, no, demanded that my mom read this book, and I beg you to do the same. You won't regret it.