Shraddha Edhate

"Learn this now and learn it well. Like a compass facing north, a man's accusing finger always finds a women. Always. You remember that, Mariam." I remember a reading a book in school, it was a course book and my first ever English literature. "Where The Red Furns Grows" by Wilson Rawls. I thought it was sad and depressing. But now that I have read a Thousand And Splendid Suns, I'm just a mess of tears and distress. I'm shattered, broke. I remember this song,"Duniya mai kitna gum hai, mera gum kitna kam hai"(There's so much of sadness in this world. My sadness is nothing compared to others).I felt exactly the same when I was reading this heartbreaking yet splendid story. The story of Mariam Jo. Oh, Mariam jo, I really really wished I could be there for you. To be with you, when you lost Nana. I can't even explain how much I cried when Nana killed herself. I felt your emotional trauma. When you were betrayed by the most honored person of your life.Jalil. And when you were married of to a total stranger that was thirty years older that you. How you were abused in your married life. And Laila, you were something. Something so different. Something I really liked. There were hardly any male characters that I liked from the story and one of them was Babi. In the world where men think nothing of their wives and daughters, or women in general, he was so supportive of his daughter, Laila. He wanted her to become something. Something of her own personality. To not depend on others, specially men. All being said, The last quarter or so of the story was so powerful and well written to me, and made me fall in love with these characters and their incredible strength and the relationships between them, rather than just feeling awful and nervous about what more they might have to go through. And that's not to say that it's only the ending that's good- it's more that, like the characters in the story, you just have to keep getting through the really painful stuff in order to appreciate the love and the good that's formed there despite it all as well. All in all, this is a great book. It's definitely 'A Must Read'. It's a privilege to get my heart broken by this book. -S

"There are moments in our lives that seem to define us.Moments we keep going back to. My life before him was so simple and decided.And now after him... there's just After." Life doesn't always give you lemons for lemonade it may also give you a thistle.And what can you do with this? At first you try to avoid it.Then you find you cannot. Eventually you realize maybe that's what you're looking for-some passion,some danger,some pain,something that consumes you. That's what this book is about.It deals with ultimate love,passion,danger,pain and lots of heartbreaks. This is the type of love story that deals with real problems.It's a story about forgiveness and unconditional love,it shows how much a person can change,like really change,if they try hard enough.It's a type of story that proves that anything is possible when it comes to self recovery.It shows that if you have someone to lean onto,someone who loves you and doesn't give upon you,you can find your way out of the darkness.It shows no matter what type of parents you had,or addictions you were faced with,you can overcome anything that stands in you way and become a better person.That's the type of story After is. From the very beginning I sensed the story's heavy atmosphere and when I finally finished it,I felt like two hands gave me a good shake and woke me up for I never wanted the dream to end. The story rises many questions and 'what ifs'.Above all in my opinion it suspends the hardest question: What lies beneath our decisions,love or selfishness? With many thoughts still circling my mind,if you are to read this book,you have to be more prepared for some major emotional turbulence. . -S