My friends all read this book when it was first published, now almost 15 years ago. I didn’t get around to it until the pandemic struck ... But then I uncovered it in a stack of books To Be Read, and wonder why I waited so long!
The characters are marvelously believable and well-developed; with universal experiences and emotions, even if you’ve never been in the Middle East, a war zone, or an immigrant community, And it’s still relevant, even as the US tries to untangle itself from our longest war. One day, as I finished reading, I listened to a newscast about Afghanistan, and I could *see* the book’s characters in the broadcast.
It’s a cliche, but I couldn’t put this book down.

In the Little Free Library that looks like a mansion, in front of the firehouse.
The book has a handwritten note on the flyleaf that explains the concept of BookCrossing.