Khaled scores again

A Thousand Splendid Suns is the latest novel by Khaled Hosseini (remember Kite Runner?). It is a splendid work of storytelling and keeps you guessing till the end. The author takes us once again to the land of Afghanistan to tell us the story of two women who share the same grief and joy. Mariam, a illegitimate child of a rich father, moves to Kabul after her marriage. She meets Laila, a young beautiful girl who has her own wretched past. It is the journey of these two women through the times of war.

It is a simple story told in a great way. Every time you expect 'OK, this is what is going to happen next' and it doesn't. Khaled is brutal at times with vivid description of the violence and the after effects of war. There are events that make you heavyhearted and happy at the same time.

It is inevitable to compare this with the novelist's previous work Kite Runner. Undoubtedly Kite Runner is a notch higher and it will go down as one of the best books of the century. But Splendid Suns won't. There was something missing.. some tiny thing that didn't give me the experience that Kite Runner gave. It is probably because Kite Runner dealt with men and Splendid Suns tells the story of women. Or it is because I expected a lot. But that doesn't in any way undermine the quality of the book. It is collection of 384 truly splendid pages and a beautiful story!