Sunday, November 24, 2013

And The Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini



Hardback:  416 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publisher:  Bloomsbury Publishing 2013

Source:  Tywyn Public Library, Wales.
First Sentences: So, then. You want a story and I will tell you one. But just the one, Don't either of you ask me for more.

Favourite Quote: “They say, Find a purpose in your life and live it. But, sometimes, it is only after you have lived that you recognize your life had a purpose, and likely one you never had in mind.” 
Review Quote: A story of love, separation, friendship, compassion, exile, memory and the troubled history of Afghanistan, spanning three continents and 60 years... Hosseini is a master storyteller and his characters brim with life... This novel will not disappoint his many admirers (Paul Dunn The Times)
My OpinionAn outstanding storyteller he has written another very moving and emotional tale.


It has been a long six year wait for a third novel from Khaled Hosseini  best selling author of The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid SunsAs a great fan of his first two novels I have been looking forward to his next novel for a long time, I can honestly say that And The Mountains Echoed was well worth the wait. An outstanding storyteller he has written another very moving and emotional tale, this time about how the choices we make in life can reverberate through time shaping our futures in surprising ways. The story does not just cross generations but also continents Kabul, Paris, San Franciso and a Greek Island.


Spanning sixty years with a vast cast of characters, the story hinges entirely on Abdullah and his sister Pari and how a heart breaking event in their childhood, will stay with them and mould their lives for years to come. The scenarios and characters are very realistic as the novel transports us from rural Afghanistan to its busy cities and beyond to the wider world as it slips backward and forward in time.  Always linking in subtle ways to the story that a loving father was relating to his children at the opening of the novel. 


A story and characters that will stay with you long after you finish the last page, a must read for all fans. If you are not yet one, it is time you read a novel from an author that really understands about life in Afghanistan. Highly recommended.


Author Khaled Hosseini talks about 'And The Mountains Echoed'




The Kite Runner - My Bookcrossing Review  If you visit the link scroll down the page for my review.


A Thousand Splendid Suns - My Bookcrossing Review



Author Profile




Khaled Hosseini was born in Kabul, Afghanistan, on March 4th 1965. In 1970 Hosseini and his family moved to Iran where his father worked for the Embassy of Afghanistan in Tehran. In 1973 the family returned to Kabul, 

In 1976, when Hosseini was 11 years old, the family moved for his father's work again to Paris.  They were unable to return to Afghanistan because of the Saur Revolution in which the PDPA communist party seized power through a bloody coup in April 1978. Instead, a year after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, in 1980 they sought political asylum in the United States and made their residence in San Jose, California.
Hosseini graduated from Independence High School in San Jose in 1984 and enrolled at Santa Clara University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in biology in 1988. The following year, he entered the University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine, where he earned his M.D. in 1993. He completed his residency in internal medicine at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles in 1996. He practised medicine for over ten years, until a year and a half after the release of The Kite Runner. He now lives in Northern California, USA with his wife, Roya and children Harris and Farah.

Khaled Hosseini is now one of the most widely read and beloved novelists in the world, with over thirty eight million copies of his books sold in more than seventy countries. The Kite Runner was a major film and was a Book of the Decade, chosen by The Times, Daily Telegraph and Guardian. A Thousand Splendid Suns was the Richard & Judy Best Read of the Year in 2008. Hosseini is also a Goodwill Envoy to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the UN Refugee Agency and the founder of The Khaled Hosseini Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation which provides humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan.

The biographical information and photo used in this post are with thanks to the following websites, where you can also find more information about the author and his writing. 

Goodreads Author Profile  Amazon Author Profile  Khaled Hosseini - Facebook Page 


Official Author Website  Khaled Hosseini - Wikipedia  YouTube

Linking up today with Literary Friday



18 comments:

  1. Hi Linda. I absolutely loved his first two novels and I am so glad that this one didn't disappoint you. His narrative, I feel, is quite wonderful. I already have this one, but I haven't started it yet, as I am going to put it forward as our Book Club read early next year. Thank you for this informative review !

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    1. He is such a talented writer and I agree writes wonderful narrative. We are also reading this in the Book Club I go to. :)

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  2. I have yet to try this author but I do have A thousand splendid suns in my tbr, I may come back to this after I have read this. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

    Lainy http://www.alwaysreading.net

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    1. His novels are really well worth reading Lainy. It is so interesting to learn something about Afghanistan as well I found.

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  3. You write such comprehensive reviews, I'm so glad I found your blog so I can come here and find out about books. I read his first two novels and I have been waiting for this one. I just found it in my local thrift store for $1.00. After finishing the 800-plus pages of 11/22/63, I am waiting a while to begin reading this one. I am glad to see it will be worth the wait. Thanks for this review.

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    1. I am delighted you find my reviews of interest Inger. :)

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  4. We're reading this for book club early next year, and I can't wait. I want to read his first two novels first. Can you believe I've never read him before? This is a fantastic review, Linda. Thanks so much for linking-up to Literary Friday!

    xo,
    RJ

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    1. Our Book Club is also reading this very soon. I do hope you can find time to read his earlier novels first.

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  5. I loved this book, too. Great review!

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    1. Thanks JoAnn, I have yet to meet someone that does not appreciate his writing.

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  6. I'm catching up on your book reviews. You read a variety of books and that's what I like to do, too. I'll look for this one! Great review! Enjoy your week my friend!

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    1. Yes my tastes are very eclectic! If you have not read his earlier novels I recommend them highly as well.

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  7. Would you consider it important to read his earlier work first or can one dive right in?

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    1. You make me want to see what it's all about. (I tried reading JP and gave up. Are you shocked?)

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    2. Making you want to read a book for yourself is exactly what I try to tempt you to do with my reviews. I do not believe in giving away much about the story, as I hate spoilers and too much info before I read a book myself. I do not think it matters if you have not read the first two at all, although I recommend you do read them sometime if you have time.
      Of course I am not shocked, that particular novel of hers is a very harrowing read!

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  8. I loved this book. Hosseini again brings to life the people of Afghanistan and it is as if I know them. He draws them so well and clearly. He mixed the chapters artfully so that they would always come back to something that would bring a memory from earlier in the story. Ths story of the div taking the beloved son really affected me. I enjoyed this book.
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  9. Thankyou for taking the time to leave your thoughts Cleo, however I would appreciate it another time if you did not use the blog as a way of advertising, thankyou. I will delete such posts as spam normally.

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  10. I was blown away by And the Mountains Echoed. While some readers have felt the narrative thread was not as cohesive as they would like, in that it was not a linear story with the main characters followed throughout, I have to say that I thought this was his most powerful novel to date. The echoes of what human connection, family, and kindness can do were not lost on me. This was a game changer in a novel and whispered of action in ways that telling me never would have done. Brilliant. Just brilliant.

    Mica
    Online Dating Plenty of Fish

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