Sabrina's Reviews > A Thousand Splendid Suns

Enraging, painful, heart-wrenching, blissful and incredibly profound is what this was like

“As a reminder of how women like us suffer, she'd said. How quietly we endure all that falls upon us."

I was somehow able to find the words for this despite feeling review slumpy and slumpy in general lol so here it goes

Think about what heartbreak feels like with no escape of it getting better and add rage in feeling impotent to do anything about it to the mix—that’s what this book felt like. My heart simultaneously soared and plummeted during various points that it felt like I was on a rollercoaster. This was undeniably more than just words on pages, it was a vivid message to what women were/are forced to endure and suffer through. so much anger was felt as I was reading because despite this being a work of fiction—it’s relates to the grim reality many young girls/women who’ve been oppressed go through and all the hardships that come with that

~No spoilers~

Without giving much away, this was essentially a story about two afghan women whose lives became intertwined during a time of upheaval in war which was ruthless and unforgiving to women and their journey individually and together is proof of that. Much of the political turmoil from the ongoing war (even today) is seen through their eyes in a decades long evolution that was as deplorable as it was cruel

“Tell her she is the noor of my eyes and the sultan of my heart."

mariam and laila their stories touched the very epicenter of my soul 🥹 i loved them. They both deserved the world and were dealt with the cruelest realities. I wanted to hug them at every stage of their lives and offer them all my love and warmth because they needed that when they couldn’t find it within each other. I gasped, grieved, cried with/for, raged and felt joy for them throughout it all. They both shared such resilience, courage and inspiring strength in wanting a better future and I’ll forever be thinking about them (it’s been days since I finished and I still am)

To all the women in the world that were/are a Mariam or a Laila—i can only pray and hope that they know what peace, healing, love and happiness looks like ❤️‍🩹 seeing how life was to them made me feel incredibly grateful in that regard to not have experienced what they have and heartbroken because women.. the way we suffer silently in unspeakable ways

Men like Tariq, Mullah Faizullah and Laila’s Babi were the best of men in Laila’s and Mariam’s lives among such monsters so plenty of praise goes to them as they restored my lost hope in the men in this book

Men scum like Rasheed deserve the very worst in hell. I wish them a lifetime of no peace and misery. Castration also seems fitting for men like him. Even more with the patriarchal abuse they subject innocent women to as a result of ingrained cultural customs. I swear his character aggravated me like no other and just men like him because so many of them unfortunately exist

This book was ultimately so heavy on my heart which was torn yet put back in such a devastatingly bittersweet way as the last line in this book had me in tears 🥺 The beautifully descriptive writing here also allowed me to feel the emotions they went through which honestly left me a bit mentally defeated. But after processing it all, I see this book staying with me for life. i don’t ever reach for this type of genre but I’m glad I did

**this is one book I’d always recommend now but please check the trigger warnings in case certain sensitive topics would be too triggering for you before reading‼️**

Quotes

“You see, some things I can teach you. Some you learn from books. But there are things that, well, you just have to see and feel.”

“A man's heart is a wretched, wretched thing. It isn't like a mother's womb. It won't bleed. It won't stretch to make room for you.”

“Time is the most unforgiving of fires.”

“One could not count the moons that shimmer on her roofs, Or the thousand splendid suns that hide behind her walls.”

“Learn this now and learn it well my daughter: Like a compass needle that points north, a man's accusing finger always finds a woman. Always.”
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First book that I’ve read in a while thats allowed me to say “did I finish the book or did it finish me?!” I wanted a good cry and I bawled. I was met with so many emotions here ugh. Rtc whenever I can find the words.
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Pre review: Long overdue for something painful and moving and wanted to read this months ago because of emara and finally got the final push to thanks to Meagan so here I am 😅