I borrowed this book from a colleague of mine that for some reason had it on his desk. He has read it several times and told me that I was welcome to borrow it. Who can say no to that!
I didn’t have any expectations to the book, I didn’t really know what it was about, except from what I read on the back cover.
It’s about Mariam and Laila, the two main characters of the book, two women in the midst of Afganistan during war and taliban regime, religious and male dominans. Mariam – a harami – born outside of marriage and Laila born into a family with brothers gone of to war, a mother with severe depressions and a educated father who is no longer allowed to teach.
Circumstances – the war comes to Kabul – will that they end being married to the same callous, violent, physical and mentally abusing man Rashid. Mariam is unable to give him children and therefore she – in Rashid eyes – is not worthy of love and kind words. Not that he was a kind person before her several miscarriages. She is reduced to something that is there to wait on him, clean his house, cook him dinner and be used as his personal punching bag. After Rashids marrige to Laila his focus is moved to her and the fact that she is able to give him children she is a shinning star – until it turns out that the first child she gives birth to is a girl.
The two women finally finds common ground after the birth of the girl. Since Mariam for years has been abused and degraded as a woman and as a person by Rashid, she had at the beginning refused to connect with Laila. Mayby refused is the wrong word, Mariam hasn’t had any love in her life for years and was unable to find that side of her again until this beautiful baby girl was born. The friendship and mutual understanding between these two women, caught in the middle of war, fight for power, women degrading politics disguised as religious facts. Every time people needs to justify something outrageous they look for a religious script they can twist and turn the wording to make it fit to their insane ideas. Mariam and Laila are just trying to survive and to make their everyday functional and they are looked down at just because of the fact that they are born women. They are disposable.
Thankfully this story has a happier ending, Tariq, the childhood turned into adult love survives and Laila can start her live with the two children and the love of her life Tariq.
The story is told in a very respectful way. It is devastating how the war ruins so many peoples lifes, they are just trying to work, have a family life, enjoy their children, educate themselves, see the beautiful sites of their country. How religion is used as justification for undermining a certain group of people, when religion actually – mostly – tries to teach you love. It is heartbreaking to see that there is no help to find because your husband is allowed to do whatever he wants, eventhough he breaks you into pieces. It is heartbreaking to see that hospitals can no longer be used by women. It is beautiful to see how strong women are, the strenght of these women and how they rise from the ashes and keeps going, stand up after each defeat, and the friendship and love that triumphs the oppresion.
Beautiful book about the strength of people under the most devastating cicumstances.