A Thousand Splendid Suns. By Khaled Hosseini. New York: Riverhead, 2007.

Once again, Hosseini slams you in the face with reality through the means of a novel! A native Afghan himself, Hosseini takes the reader on a journey through the tumultuous history of Afghanistan, beginning with the Communist rule, to the infighting of warlords, to the Taliban takeover, to the present struggling democracy. The story is unfolds around the lives of two Afghan women, Mariam and Laila.

However, this is not just about coming to an understanding of the tragedy that is the Afghan’s way of life, it is also about seeing from the inside the horrors and oppressions of women who live under Islamic rule, and particularly Sharia law. The gifting of Hosseini as a writer is that he brings the stories we have heard on the news and thrusts them into our hearts! A news report about the sufferings of women under the Taliban regime cause us to be unsettled. When you read Hosseini’s description, after getting to know these two women, personally it seems, you do not feel unsettled - you weep and gasp! At every point along the path of Laila and Mariam’s lives, disappointment, deception, and heartache meet them! Through a series of unfortunate circumstances, they actually wind up married to the same guy. He eventually abuses them emotionally and physically. Exhausted to their end, they end up killing him in self-defense. Of course, there is no such thing for women in a Taliban world! You’ll have to read it to find out what happens next! As Mariam was told early by her mother, “Women like us. We endure. It’s all we have” (p. 19). Their stories of endurance is absolutely brutal and heart-wrenching! You will stop somewhere along the pages of this novel and thank God for the life you have in America!!!!!!

This is one of the most eye-opening novels I have ever encountered, and every westerner should read it. We have no way of understanding the culture, mindset, and life of those of the eastern world. As a Christian, I should have an interest in them. As Americans, we should have interest in understanding the part of the world where we are trying to stop the advancement of terror! Hosseini’s book goes a long way in helping us to step into their world!

As a westerner, Splendid Suns helped me to see that there are those in the Muslim world who do not want war, are tired of war, and just wish to live in peace with no intrusion of American soldiers into their streets. There are some Muslims who do desire to find a happy existence where women can live as humans and neighbors can solve their differences through dialogue. Unfortunately, their historical roots are against them. The point is, not every one wants war, wants America destroyed, or is consumed with world domination. The sad truth, however, is that just enough people in that part of the world do want those things!

As a believer, Splendid Suns caused me to rejoice in the assurance that we have in Christ Jesus our Lord and to ache for the multitudes of Muslims. First, their faith and eternity are in the hands of a god that they can never be totally assured will save them because salvation ultimately resides in their performance and in however they find Allah to be when they meet him (p. 371). Second, the comforting words of the Koran are rooted in their poetic nature not in a divine nature (p. 17). Third, the deception of Islam is that it attributes some qualities of Jehovah to Allah, such as his sovereign control over creation (p. 38).

In the end, one of the women actually finds somewhat of a peaceful, fulfilling life. It’s a great way to end a novel, but still a tragic way to end a life! Namely, finally finding some kind of tranquility for this existence, but never coming to the only source of tranquility in the life to come!