I got book from my friend free, so started reading :). I have not read the much acclaimed, kite runner though. So I was not expecting a great novel or anything. And the book did not surprise me. (Though I said I was not expecting anything, I think in some hidden corner of my mind I was). But I have to say the author has flair for telling a story. The book is definitely interesting enough, to not to let you quit in middle. From the book, I have two disappointments.
I am from India and I have seen domestic violence. During reading, so many times, I thought, I don’t want to read to this kind of cruelty. It hurts even to read. I kept on reading, waiting for Mariam’s luck to be changed. I refuse to believe that someone’s whole life can go on without single incidence of true joy. I think that’s very severe dose of reality (reality: Because its true for thousands of women in third world/conservative countries). You don’t expect fiction to be that harsh.
Second, The end is stretched too far without any story. After Mariam’s death in third part, nothing really happens out of ordinary. The author could have tell story after Mariam’s death in a single page. Nevertheless, he devoted the whole part four to it. Laila’s visit to Herat, Mariam’s Hometown, seems a mere and very weak consolation to Mariam’s life. Totally unnecessary.
In the end, I feel that the book was alright, a level ahead than the books you read in buses, trains. That’s it. Nothing great about it.