Our Favorite Books

[mathsparks]

I read the Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini back in 2007, when events in Afganistan prompted me to pick up the book.


From wikipedia: The story of Amir, a well-to-do Pashtun boy from Kabul, who is haunted by the guilt of betraying his childhood friend Hassan, the son of his father's Hazara servant. The story is set against a backdrop of tumultuous events, from the fall of the monarchy in Afghanistan through the Soviet invasion, the mass exodus of refugees to Pakistan and the US, and the Taliban regime.

Hazaras were massacred when the Talibans came to rid Afghanistan of filth.
The book described how Hazara men and boys were shot right in front of their families and their bodies left on the streets for dogs to eat. As in the words of a Talib..dog meat for dogs. According to the book, Hazaras were Mogul descendants, and that they looked a little like Chinese people. Pashtuns were Sunni Muslims, while Hazaras were Shi'a. I was surprised to find out that the hazaras are mogul descendants and looked like Chinese too.

The first English book written by an Afghan, though simple in writing, left a lasting impression on me with these..

and I brought Hassan’s son from Afghanistan to America, lifting him from a certainty of turmoil and dropping him in a turmoil of uncertainty.

There are a lot of children in Afghanistan, but little childhood.

I wondered how forgiveness budded, not with the fanfare of epiphany, but with pain gathering its things, packing up and slipping away unannounced in the middle of the night.

That was a long time ago, but it's wrong what they say about the past, I've learned, about how you can bury it. Because the past claws its way out

A reminder of a dream that was wilting even as it was budding.

I had wanted so much to watch the movie, but eventually couldnt bring myself to watch it, just like Blobbi.

It's a great book, mummy of 2. Go read it! It’ll bring tears to your eyes. And get your mind off petty worries.

[mummy of 2]

Thanks for all the reviews and sharing. Sounds like a very touching book. Will look for a copy during my next trip to library :celebrate:

[joconde]

I'm not really a bookworm, but this book left a deep impresson on me, partly becos i have a son of this age myself.


Roddy Doyle's \"Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha\" is about the childhood of a boy called Paddy and tells how he's being forced to grow up. Made me cry so much !! :oops:

I recommend all fathers (and parents with son) to read this, I'm sure it will strike a chord with them

[Blobbi]

autumnbronze:

Also his next one entitled \"A Thousand Splendid Suns\"

How's this one, autumnbronze? Am quite tempted but during the Kino book sale, I bought so many, I better finish first.

[Pen88n]

My Recommendation:

1. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime by Mark Haddon

Fifteen-year-old Christopher John Francis Boone is mathematically gifted and socially hopeless. He takes everything that he sees (or is told) at face value, and is unable to sort out the strange behavior of his elders and peers.

Late one night, Christopher comes across his neighbor’s poodle, Wellington, impaled on a garden fork. Wellington’s Christopher resolves to discover just who has murdered Wellington. He is encouraged by Siobhan, a social worker at his school, to write a book about his investigations. This book is written from his point of view.

2. Tuedays with Morries by Mitch Albom

In moments of Morrie’s final days as he lies dying from a terminal illness on his deathbed, this twinkling-eyed mensch manages to teach us all about living robustly and fully.

3. Outlier: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell

Why do some people succeed, living remarkably productive and impactful lives, while so many more never reach their potential? Challenging our cherished belief of the "self-made man," Gladwell makes the democratic assertion that superstars don’t arise out of nowhere, propelled by genius and talent: "they are invariably the beneficiaries of hidden advantages and extraordinary opportunities and cultural legacies that allow them to learn and work hard and make sense of the world in ways others cannot." Examining the lives of outliers from Mozart to Bill Gates, he builds a convincing case for how successful people rise on a tide of advantages, "some deserved, some not, some earned, some just plain lucky."

[schweppes]

Blobbi:

autumnbronze:

Also his next one entitled \"A Thousand Splendid Suns\"

How's this one, autumnbronze? Am quite tempted but during the Kino book sale, I bought so many, I better finish first.

Hey, Blobbi. \"A Thousand Splendid Suns\" is a good book too. You shd try and read it if you can. Whilst \"Kite Runner\" discusses the relationship between father and sons and male friendship, \"Splendid Suns\" talks about mothers and daughters and female friendship.

Even tho I enjoyed reading \"Splendid Suns, my personal fave is still \"Kite Runner\".

Oh... and I saw the movie too. Managed to catch it on Starhub Cable. It was touching and followed the book rather closely. But I think I cried more reading the book!!! :lol:

[schweppes]

Pen88n:

2. Tuedays with Morries by Mitch Albom

In moments of Morrie's final days as he lies dying from a terminal illness on his deathbed, this twinkling-eyed mensch manages to teach us all about living robustly and fully.

I cried buckets when I read this book! on MRT, at home, at the cafe... This is a really good book. It's not sad in a depressing sense. But it's very touching and inspiring. Touches me at a very personal level!

The other book by Mitch Albom that I enjoyed reading is \"Five People You Meet in Heaven\". Heart-warming! :lol:

[autumnbronze]

schweppes:

Hey, Blobbi. \"A Thousand Splendid Suns\" is a good book too. You shd try and read it if you can. Whilst \"Kite Runner\" discusses the relationship between father and sons and male friendship, \"Splendid Suns\" talks about mothers and daughters and female friendship.


Even tho I enjoyed reading \"Splendid Suns, my personal fave is still \"Kite Runner\".

Oh... and I saw the movie too. Managed to catch it on Starhub Cable. It was touching and followed the book rather closely. But I think I cried more reading the book!!! :lol:

Hi Blobbi, Schweppes,

Never saw the movie .... always prefer reading the book.

Agree with Schweppes that its a good book. Can't say whether 1st one's better cuz I like them both

In the former, Hosseini writes about the cty he remembers during his childhood b4 the Taliban took over and 'ripped it to shreds' and to dispel some of the misconceptions that the world had of his home cty.

In the latter, he explores the role of women and also dispels the notion held by many that Afghan women were repressed/oppressed b4 the Taliban regime. Its the contrary. Its only after that the Taliban took over that the the story unfolds of these two women who not only had to endure the tyranny of their husband (though difference in age, but married the same man), but also the brutality of the Taliban. And it is their resilience that see them through.

Am currently reading 'Prisoner of Tehran', true story abt a girl who enjoyed freedom (literally) under the rule of the Shah of Iran until the Iranian Revolution toppled his rule and Khomeini took over. The lives of women were never the same again. And because she had demonstrated against the strict rule, she was arrested and doomed to be executed until ....

Well, if you are interested to find out if she survived and what happened to her, do go and borrow/buy the book

There is a poem by Emily Bronte before Chapter One:

And if I pray, the only prayer
That moves my lips for me
Is, \"Leave the heart that now I bear,
And give me liberty!\"
Yes, as my swift days near their goal,
'Tis all that I implore
In life and death, a chainless soul,
With courage to endure.

Believe the author chose it cuz it pretty much sums up what she felt during her years as a 'prisoner'.

[schweppes]

autumnbronze:

Never saw the movie .... always prefer reading the book.

Hey, Autumnbronze. Yes - same same... Books are so much more vivid! Have you read Q & A by Vikas Swarup? The movie version is Slumdog Millionaire. In fact, the book version is different from the movie. I like how the authour weaved his characters, plot and theme into the story. Very interesting!

However, found Vikas Swarup 2nd book, the Six Suspects a little confusing. Felt that he tried too much.

[Blobbi]

schweppes:

autumnbronze:

Never saw the movie .... always prefer reading the book.

Hey, Autumnbronze. Yes - same same... Books are so much more vivid!

Same same too :).