Herat, Kabul, Murree , Afghanistan 272 pages

1. Herat, Kabul, Murree, Afghanistan272 pages A Thousand Splendid Suns (Fiction) By: KaitlynnGosselin

2. KhaledHosseini • Born in 1965 in Kabul, Afghanistan • In 1976 he moved to Paris because of his fathers job and then moved to San Jose California in 1980 • In 1993 Khaled graduated with a medical degree • In 2003 he published his first book called The Kite Runner and it became an international bestseller • He now lives in Northern California and is working on The KhaledHosseiniFoundation • provides shelter to refugee families and economic and education opportunities and healthcare for women and children

3. Characters Mariam Mariam is first introduced when she was 15 years old. She lived with Nana (her mom) in the Kolba on the hills above the city Herat. She has flat hair, closely set green eyes, a narrow chin and thin lips. The novel is told in her point of view and she ages as the books goes on. She marries Rasheed and is unable to have children. Laila Laila is introduced when she is 9 years old. She lives in Kabul and is in love with her neighbor/best friend Tariq. She has curly hair, green eyes, high cheek bones and plump lips. The novel is also told her Laila’s point of view and she also ages as the book goes on. She ends up living with Mariam and Rasheed and having no choice but to marry him. She has 2 children Aziza and Zalmai and at the end of the novel she was expecting another.

4. Summary • A Thousand Splendid Suns is about what was happening in Afghanistan for the last thirty years with the Soviet invasion and the Taliban. Its starts off with Mariam’s life and then continuously switches between Laila’s. 10 main events that happen in the novel are • Mariam leaves and her mom hangs herself • She’s forced to marry Rasheedand they move away to Kabul • Laila is introduced and she is in love with Tariq • Tariq’s Family moves due to the war • Laila’s father convinces her mother to move but they end up getting killed • Mariam and Rasheed find her, and she moves in with them but then marries Rasheed • Laila finds out she is pregnant but with Tariq’s child (Aziza) • Her and Mariam try to escape but is caught and beaten by Rasheed • Laila has another child but this time it was Rasheeds (Zalmai) • Rasheed beats Laila and almost kills her, but Mariam saves her and kills Rasheed. She is sent to jail but then gets killed by the Taliban • Laila and Tariq move to Murree and then end up moving back to Kabul and expect another child.

5. Likes and Dislikes Likes: • Tariq found Laila and they ended up getting married like they planned. • It was never boring, had so much going on Dislikes: • Mariam couldn’t have babies because then Rasheed wouldn’t hate her so much • How the book is written, kind of confusing at first

6. Vocabulary • Jinn- spirits mentioned in he Qur’an and Islmaic mythology who inhabit an unseen world in dimensions beyond visible of humans. They believe that the jinn entered her body that night. • Pakol- a soft, round-topped men's hat. He wore a brown coloured wool pakol on his head • Tahamul- to endure You only have one skill, and that is tahamul. • Trellised-a structure of open latticework, especially one used as a support for vines. His house had a balcony with a trellised ceiling. • Kolba- a small shack. On Thursday Jalil visited her at the Kolba. • Ayat/Ayah- evidence or sign He taught her every Ayat in the Koran when she was a child.

7. Theme/Lessons • The theme of this book was about 2 different people coming together by tragic events and realizing that all they have is each other. A lesson that I learned was to never stop believing in something. In Laila’s case she knew that she was in love with Tariq and that she wanted to marry him and even though she went through many hard times, in the end they found each other and they got married.

8. Why should you read this book ? • Its about things that are actually happening in Afghanistan • Interestingly written, not like a regular book with one main character • There’s always something new happening

9. Review • The Novel A Thousand Splendid Suns is a very interesting novel. There was never a dull moment and there was always something new happening. I thought it was different how the book was written in two different characters views. It was a bit confusing at the beginning, but as I read on it was no problem. I really enjoyed reading this novel and if anyone liked The Kite Runner I would definitely recommend this book. I really like KhaledHosseini’s novels because he writes about things that are actually happening in the world. I would give this novel 4 stars.

10. If I could… • If I could change the title I would because I never really understood why it was called A Thousand Splendid Suns. I would change it to something like When two souls come together because that’s really what this novel is about. Two people coming together and surviving hard times.

11. Websites http://www.khaledhosseini.com/hosseini-bio.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page http://dictionary.reference.com/