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This is one book which is un-put-down-able; one of the few that touched me so much that tears did flow! An easy read, it flows smoothly, neither too fast nor too slow- not many authors achieve such easy story-telling…
A book about women – true, the setting is war-ridden Afghanistan- but a story of many subjugated women around the world. A saga of what may seem to be their biggest weakness, but what keeps their sanity and gives them strength-that of acceptance, understanding with grace; of valuing the simple pleasures of life; familial values.
This is a story of two women, Mariam and Laila, in Rasheed’s unhappy household. Embittered by the losses of his first wife and their son, eccentric Rasheed pours his frustration on the seemingly hapless women. How they live through the ordeal in a Talibanised Afghanistan, a surprising happy-happy twist 2/3rds into the book make it an engrossing read.
I loved the small-small usages of Farsi-Pashto in the book.. Mariam-”jo”, “hamshira”,”Khodaya”. The sweet-short descriptions of Herat, Kabul sprinkled here and there do not interrupt the flow; unlike several poetic descriptions which certain authors indulge themselves in – good if given in small portions at the right point, which usually doesn’t happen.
The liberal outlook of certain families described astonished me- the pre-Taliban times seemed so normal; there were those that were still uneducated and bound by rigid rules, but there were free women too- who could speak their mind, follow the profession of their choice. Because from the time I could comprehend politics Afghanistan seemed like this decadent place. I thank God it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was! A recent article in the news paper on a lady managing a hotel in Kabul seemed very encouraging too 
Times are hopefully, slowly but surely, changing for that beautiful country…
Overall: Wonderful. A must buy
