Plot Overview
A Thousand Splendid Suns, by Khaled Hosseini, takes place in Afghanistan over the course of about 50 years. In the 1960s, a young girl named Mariam, lives in a small shack with her mother, Nana in the outskirts of the town of Herat. Mariam’s father, Jalil, is a rich cinema owner and lives in a large house with his three wives and ten children. Nana used to be Jalil’s housekeeper, but when she became pregnant with Mariam, Jalil kicked her out of his house. Although they live apart, Jalil visits Mariam and her mother each week. For her 15th birthday, Mariam asks Jalil if she can see the movie Pinocchio with him at his cinema. While waiting for Jalil the next day, Mariam decides into venture into town for the first time. She finds Jalil’s house, but his servants tell her that he is not available. Upon hearing this, Mariam makes the bold decision to spend the night on the street outside her father’s house. The next morning, Jalil’s personal driver brings Mariam home and upon her arrival, Mariam sees that Nana hanged herself. After this tragedy, Jalil and his wives take Mariam in. A week later, Jalil forces Mariam to marry a man named Rasheed from Kabul. Rasheed demands that Mariam wear a burqa in public and that she not talk to anyone unless spoken to. Mariam spends her days cleaning and cooking while Rasheed is at work. Not long after the marriage, Mariam finds out that she is pregnant and the couple is ecstatic. After happy celebrations for the expected child, Mariam tragically has a miscarriage. Mariam decides to have a burial for the child and Rasheed refuses to join her because he “already buried one son.” Four years later, Mariam is still unable to have a child and had six more miscarriages. One night, Rasheed gets annoyed with Mariam’s cooking and forces her to chew on pebbles to show her what he thinks her cooking tastes like.
In the late 1980s, the book shifts focus to a young girl named Laila who lives in Kabul with her mother, Fariba “Mammy”, and her father, Hakim “Babi.” Laila’s older brothers are fighting in army, so she spends most of her time with her good friend Tariq. He and his family left to visit Tariq’s sick uncle for four weeks. One day when Laila is walking home from school, a boy named Khadim and his shoot Laila with water guns filled with their urine. When Tariq and his family return, Laila tells Tariq about the incident with Khadim and Tariq beats him. After dinner one night, a man comes to the house to tell Mammy and Babi that Laila’s brothers died in battle. The family hosts a funeral and Mammy goes into a deep depression. Laila, Tariq, and Babi take a trip to a landmark in the area and Babi tells them that he wants to leave Kabul because of the fighting, but Mammy does not want to leave. When President Najibullah surrenders from power, Mammy finally feels happy and full of life again. Because of this, Mammy decides to throw a party, inviting the neighborhood. After hearing much gossip about herself and Tariq, Laila privately talks to Tariq about their friendship. Before the two can have a serious conversation, two men begin fighting over politics. A few days after the party, Tariq shows Laila that he purchased a gun to keep her safe and they kiss. In the summer of 1992, Tariq tells Laila that his family is leaving the country to escape the fighting. Upon hearing this news, Laila and Tariq realize how much care about each other and they make love. Tariq asks Laila to marry him and to leave with his family, but Laila says she cannot because she does not want to leave her own family behind. Weeks after Tariq’s family leaves, Mammy finally agrees to leave Kabul. As the family is preparing to leave, the house is bombed and Mammy and Babi are killed. Laila goes in and out of consciousness as someone takes care of her.
Mariam and Rasheed find Laila lying in the street with some severe injuries, so they take her in to take care of her. When Laila begins to regain consciousness, she believes that she should have died instead of her parents. One day, a man named Abdul Sharif, a businessman who traveled between Kabul and Pakistan, comes to the house to see Laila. He tells Laila that Tariq had stayed in the same hospital room as him after a bomb hit the refugee camp where Tariq was staying. Abdul informs Laila that Tariq is now dead, but he wanted Laila to know that he was thinking of her. After Abdul leaves, Mariam finds out that Rasheed wants to marry Laila and is furious about this decision, but Laila agrees to the marriage. Laila recently realized she is pregnant with Tariq’s child so she believes getting married to Rasheed is the best way to cover up the fact that she is not a virgin. Since the marriage, Mariam has been giving Laila the cold shoulder, but the two women avoid confrontation. One day, neither of them can contain themselves and they erupt in a screaming fight. In the spring of 1993, Laila gives birth to a healthy little girl named Aziza. Rasheed is disappointed that the child was not a boy and seems to have no interest in the child. Rasheed believes that Mariam has been teaching Laila to resist him, so he attempts to beat her but Laila stops him. After seeing this act, Mariam starts to befriend Laila and the two of them plan to run away with the money Laila has been stealing from Rasheed. In the spring of 1994, Mariam, Laila, and Aziza take a cab to the train station and find a man to pose as their cousin so they can escape. Before boarding the train, the women are caught, interrogated by the police, and are brought back home. When they return home, Rasheed beats Laila and Aziza and locks them in their room. He then beats Mariam and locks her in the shed. After a few days without food, water, or light, Rasheed finally lets the women go. In September of 1996, the Taliban enter the city of Kabul and impose strict laws, especially on women. Rasheed is in favor of the group, but Laila is not happy about the Taliban being in her city. Laila soon realizes she is pregnant again, and in September of 1997, she goes into labor. The first hospital does not accept women as patients, so the family has to find another one. At the next hospital, Laila finds out she must have a C-section for the child to survive, but there are no painkillers available. Laila goes along with the process anyway and, in full burqa, gives birth to a son named Zalmai.
After Zalmai’s birth, it seems as if Rasheed cares more for Zalmai than he does for Aziza. Rasheed bought a TV and VCR player on the black market for Zalmai even though it is illegal to own these electronics. After buying these things, along with many other unnecessary possessions, Rasheed finds himself in debt to many people and wants Aziza to beg for money on the streets. When Laila disapproves of this, Rasheed slaps her. As Laila punches him back, Rasheed lifts her by the throat and threatens her by putting a gun in her mouth. In the summer of 2000, Rasheed’s shop burns down, so the family has no choice but to sell everything, leaving them with no food or money. Mariam and Rasheed take a trip to the Intercontinental Hotel to call Jalil. With the hopes that he will be able to help the family, Mariam is shocked to find out that Jalil passed away in 1987. In April of 2001, the family has to send Aziza to an orphanage until Rasheed can find a job. Laila tells Aziza she is going to a special school and Laila and Mariam lie to the director, Zaman, saying their husband died. Laila is ashamed that she has to do this to her daughter, but Zaman reassures her that it is the Taliban’s fault that she cannot get a job, not hers. Laila visits the orphanage often even though the Taliban beats her for being on the streets without a man. In the summer of 2001, Rasheed gets a job at the Intercontinental Hotel. When Rasheed leaves for work one evening and the family returns from a day out, Tariq is waiting at their door. Mariam stays upstairs with Zalmai while Laila and Tariq talk. Laila explains what he missed while he was gone and Tariq explains that his parents passed away. He also tells Laila about his job and life in Murree. Laila tells Tariq about Aziza being his daughter and Tariq regrets not taking Laila with him when he had the chance. After Tariq leaves and Rasheed returns from work, Zalmai tells Rasheed about Tariq’s visit. Rasheed forces Zalmai to go upstairs and proceeds to beat Laila and Mariam mercilessly. As Rasheed chokes Laila, Mariam fetches a shovel and ends up killing him. Once the women clean themselves up, they move Rasheed’s dead body into the shed. Laila says the family needs to leave right away, but Mariam is willing to accept her punishment and decides not to leave. When Laila, Tariq, and the children leave Kabul, Mariam goes to prison, where she admits to the crime without any witnesses. Before her public execution, Mariam reflects on how Laila and her children affected her life.
Laila and Tariq get married and move into the hotel Tariq works at in the town of Murree. Aziza learns that Tariq is her real father and is overjoyed by the news. On September 11, 2001, the family watches the bombing of the Twin Towers on TV and are surprised to find out that the U.S. has declared war on Afghanistan. In the summer of 2002, the family moves back to Kabul to start their lives over. Before returning to the town, Laila visits the town of Herat where Mariam grew up. Laila finds the house of Mariam’s former religion instructor and speaks with his son, Hamza, about Mariam. Hamza takes Laila to visit the place where Mariam lived and Laila finally feels some closure. Hamza also give Laila a box from Jalil intended for Mariam. The box contains a letter, a sack of money, and a VCR tape of Pinocchio. In the spring of 2003, Laila and Tariq help up Zaman’s orphanage. Laila becomes a teacher in the classroom Tariq and Zaman built at the orphanage. Laila finds out she is pregnant again and the family wants to name the child Mariam if it is a girl.
A Thousand Splendid Suns, by Khaled Hosseini, takes place in Afghanistan over the course of about 50 years. In the 1960s, a young girl named Mariam, lives in a small shack with her mother, Nana in the outskirts of the town of Herat. Mariam’s father, Jalil, is a rich cinema owner and lives in a large house with his three wives and ten children. Nana used to be Jalil’s housekeeper, but when she became pregnant with Mariam, Jalil kicked her out of his house. Although they live apart, Jalil visits Mariam and her mother each week. For her 15th birthday, Mariam asks Jalil if she can see the movie Pinocchio with him at his cinema. While waiting for Jalil the next day, Mariam decides into venture into town for the first time. She finds Jalil’s house, but his servants tell her that he is not available. Upon hearing this, Mariam makes the bold decision to spend the night on the street outside her father’s house. The next morning, Jalil’s personal driver brings Mariam home and upon her arrival, Mariam sees that Nana hanged herself. After this tragedy, Jalil and his wives take Mariam in. A week later, Jalil forces Mariam to marry a man named Rasheed from Kabul. Rasheed demands that Mariam wear a burqa in public and that she not talk to anyone unless spoken to. Mariam spends her days cleaning and cooking while Rasheed is at work. Not long after the marriage, Mariam finds out that she is pregnant and the couple is ecstatic. After happy celebrations for the expected child, Mariam tragically has a miscarriage. Mariam decides to have a burial for the child and Rasheed refuses to join her because he “already buried one son.” Four years later, Mariam is still unable to have a child and had six more miscarriages. One night, Rasheed gets annoyed with Mariam’s cooking and forces her to chew on pebbles to show her what he thinks her cooking tastes like.
In the late 1980s, the book shifts focus to a young girl named Laila who lives in Kabul with her mother, Fariba “Mammy”, and her father, Hakim “Babi.” Laila’s older brothers are fighting in army, so she spends most of her time with her good friend Tariq. He and his family left to visit Tariq’s sick uncle for four weeks. One day when Laila is walking home from school, a boy named Khadim and his shoot Laila with water guns filled with their urine. When Tariq and his family return, Laila tells Tariq about the incident with Khadim and Tariq beats him. After dinner one night, a man comes to the house to tell Mammy and Babi that Laila’s brothers died in battle. The family hosts a funeral and Mammy goes into a deep depression. Laila, Tariq, and Babi take a trip to a landmark in the area and Babi tells them that he wants to leave Kabul because of the fighting, but Mammy does not want to leave. When President Najibullah surrenders from power, Mammy finally feels happy and full of life again. Because of this, Mammy decides to throw a party, inviting the neighborhood. After hearing much gossip about herself and Tariq, Laila privately talks to Tariq about their friendship. Before the two can have a serious conversation, two men begin fighting over politics. A few days after the party, Tariq shows Laila that he purchased a gun to keep her safe and they kiss. In the summer of 1992, Tariq tells Laila that his family is leaving the country to escape the fighting. Upon hearing this news, Laila and Tariq realize how much care about each other and they make love. Tariq asks Laila to marry him and to leave with his family, but Laila says she cannot because she does not want to leave her own family behind. Weeks after Tariq’s family leaves, Mammy finally agrees to leave Kabul. As the family is preparing to leave, the house is bombed and Mammy and Babi are killed. Laila goes in and out of consciousness as someone takes care of her.
Mariam and Rasheed find Laila lying in the street with some severe injuries, so they take her in to take care of her. When Laila begins to regain consciousness, she believes that she should have died instead of her parents. One day, a man named Abdul Sharif, a businessman who traveled between Kabul and Pakistan, comes to the house to see Laila. He tells Laila that Tariq had stayed in the same hospital room as him after a bomb hit the refugee camp where Tariq was staying. Abdul informs Laila that Tariq is now dead, but he wanted Laila to know that he was thinking of her. After Abdul leaves, Mariam finds out that Rasheed wants to marry Laila and is furious about this decision, but Laila agrees to the marriage. Laila recently realized she is pregnant with Tariq’s child so she believes getting married to Rasheed is the best way to cover up the fact that she is not a virgin. Since the marriage, Mariam has been giving Laila the cold shoulder, but the two women avoid confrontation. One day, neither of them can contain themselves and they erupt in a screaming fight. In the spring of 1993, Laila gives birth to a healthy little girl named Aziza. Rasheed is disappointed that the child was not a boy and seems to have no interest in the child. Rasheed believes that Mariam has been teaching Laila to resist him, so he attempts to beat her but Laila stops him. After seeing this act, Mariam starts to befriend Laila and the two of them plan to run away with the money Laila has been stealing from Rasheed. In the spring of 1994, Mariam, Laila, and Aziza take a cab to the train station and find a man to pose as their cousin so they can escape. Before boarding the train, the women are caught, interrogated by the police, and are brought back home. When they return home, Rasheed beats Laila and Aziza and locks them in their room. He then beats Mariam and locks her in the shed. After a few days without food, water, or light, Rasheed finally lets the women go. In September of 1996, the Taliban enter the city of Kabul and impose strict laws, especially on women. Rasheed is in favor of the group, but Laila is not happy about the Taliban being in her city. Laila soon realizes she is pregnant again, and in September of 1997, she goes into labor. The first hospital does not accept women as patients, so the family has to find another one. At the next hospital, Laila finds out she must have a C-section for the child to survive, but there are no painkillers available. Laila goes along with the process anyway and, in full burqa, gives birth to a son named Zalmai.
After Zalmai’s birth, it seems as if Rasheed cares more for Zalmai than he does for Aziza. Rasheed bought a TV and VCR player on the black market for Zalmai even though it is illegal to own these electronics. After buying these things, along with many other unnecessary possessions, Rasheed finds himself in debt to many people and wants Aziza to beg for money on the streets. When Laila disapproves of this, Rasheed slaps her. As Laila punches him back, Rasheed lifts her by the throat and threatens her by putting a gun in her mouth. In the summer of 2000, Rasheed’s shop burns down, so the family has no choice but to sell everything, leaving them with no food or money. Mariam and Rasheed take a trip to the Intercontinental Hotel to call Jalil. With the hopes that he will be able to help the family, Mariam is shocked to find out that Jalil passed away in 1987. In April of 2001, the family has to send Aziza to an orphanage until Rasheed can find a job. Laila tells Aziza she is going to a special school and Laila and Mariam lie to the director, Zaman, saying their husband died. Laila is ashamed that she has to do this to her daughter, but Zaman reassures her that it is the Taliban’s fault that she cannot get a job, not hers. Laila visits the orphanage often even though the Taliban beats her for being on the streets without a man. In the summer of 2001, Rasheed gets a job at the Intercontinental Hotel. When Rasheed leaves for work one evening and the family returns from a day out, Tariq is waiting at their door. Mariam stays upstairs with Zalmai while Laila and Tariq talk. Laila explains what he missed while he was gone and Tariq explains that his parents passed away. He also tells Laila about his job and life in Murree. Laila tells Tariq about Aziza being his daughter and Tariq regrets not taking Laila with him when he had the chance. After Tariq leaves and Rasheed returns from work, Zalmai tells Rasheed about Tariq’s visit. Rasheed forces Zalmai to go upstairs and proceeds to beat Laila and Mariam mercilessly. As Rasheed chokes Laila, Mariam fetches a shovel and ends up killing him. Once the women clean themselves up, they move Rasheed’s dead body into the shed. Laila says the family needs to leave right away, but Mariam is willing to accept her punishment and decides not to leave. When Laila, Tariq, and the children leave Kabul, Mariam goes to prison, where she admits to the crime without any witnesses. Before her public execution, Mariam reflects on how Laila and her children affected her life.
Laila and Tariq get married and move into the hotel Tariq works at in the town of Murree. Aziza learns that Tariq is her real father and is overjoyed by the news. On September 11, 2001, the family watches the bombing of the Twin Towers on TV and are surprised to find out that the U.S. has declared war on Afghanistan. In the summer of 2002, the family moves back to Kabul to start their lives over. Before returning to the town, Laila visits the town of Herat where Mariam grew up. Laila finds the house of Mariam’s former religion instructor and speaks with his son, Hamza, about Mariam. Hamza takes Laila to visit the place where Mariam lived and Laila finally feels some closure. Hamza also give Laila a box from Jalil intended for Mariam. The box contains a letter, a sack of money, and a VCR tape of Pinocchio. In the spring of 2003, Laila and Tariq help up Zaman’s orphanage. Laila becomes a teacher in the classroom Tariq and Zaman built at the orphanage. Laila finds out she is pregnant again and the family wants to name the child Mariam if it is a girl.