A Thousand Splendid Suns

I just finished A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini (author of The Kite Runner).

I must say that I really enjoy his writing and storytelling style. It is so interesting to learn more about Afghanistan (although I realize it is fiction). Phil asked me if I would recommend this book. I had to think about that. Here is my answer:

If you are looking for a happy story ... don't read this book. The ending does not compensate for the sorrow and horror that must be a reality for far too many people in that area of the world.

If you are willing to face some pretty harsh realities and experience some of the sorrow, you might appreciate this book. It is well written.

So yeah, I would recommend it but with some serious qualifications.

I have realized that the books I like best are the ones that champion the human spirit. I love stories about people doing hard things. I appreciate fiction that is plausible (even if it is "fantasy" - if the author can make me think it is plausible, they get big points). I like to read books about other cultures (either in place or time) than my own. I want a book to inspire me and make me think.

Here are some that I've enjoyed:

Cry The Beloved Country by Alan Paton
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Agony and the Ecstasy by Irving Stone
Oh Pioneers by Willa Cather
Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe

With that as a background, any suggestions for my reading list?

T'is the Season

The Christmas season seems to bring out the best and worst in society.

I may offend some of my faithful readers but I detest the whole concept of black Friday. To me it says, "let's interrupt what is to be a weekend of giving thanks and family and instead wake up early so we are grouchy then go spend the day consuming instead of giving thanks and in some cases being rude to other customers instead of enjoying our families." I mean stampedes to the point of death?? Really? What kind of society is this? I see shoppers frantically purchasing things because they feel expected to provide a gift. What happened to spending weeks in thoughtful preparation to show appreciation and admiration? It makes me sad to see how consumer-oriented the holidays are. This year we have the added, dualistic pressures of the recession: money is tighter, yet it is our patriotic duty to stimulate the economy. Sad.

On the other hand, people are so very generous during this time of year. I love to hear of and see people taking care of others. I see people reaching out to make sure children and adults have some kind of gift Christmas morning. Even in the midst of the recession, people give to the food pantry or to their neighbors. I love to see homes opened up to welcome the lonely into the circle of love and friendship and family during the holidays. There seriously is so much good that is done.

It seems that often during the year we think about giving in more global terms. We give to organizations (our church, non-profits, government agencies) but at Christmastime we more often reach out to individuals in our midst. It reminds me of a section in C.S. Lewis's book The Screwtape Letters*, in which Screwtape tells Wormwood, “Do what you will, there is going to be some benevolence, as well as some malice, in your patient’s soul. The great thing is to direct the malice to his immediate neighbours whom he meets every day and to thrust his benevolence out to the remote circumference, to people he does not know. The malice thus becomes wholly real and the benevolence largely imaginary."

I love that at Christmas we show our benevolence in ways that it becomes wholly real. I hope that I extend that reality throughout the year.


*The Screwtape Letters is a fictional account of Screwtape (a devil) training his nephew (Wormwood) in the art of temptation. It is such an insightful and interesting book, I highly recommend it (and pretty much any of Lewis's books).

What we are reading ... and reading ... and reading again.