I realise I am probably in the minority here but I really didn't like this book.

Amir grows up playing with Hassan, the son of his father's servant. When he is 12, however, he betrays his friend and eventually sees him sent away.

Can he atone for this years later?

I didn't like Amir and found it a struggle to read this book. I think if I had started from chapter 8 I might have liked it better. I did skip a section at the end which I found too disturbing to continue with.

In a metaphorical throwing of the book as far as I can I am going to do a RABCK for Australia and New Zealand!

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Flinging this book as far as I can.

Hope it finds love in Australia! Thanks FreePages for promising to read and forward!

Caught :-)

I'll start reading this tonight. I cant wait, with some trepidation, I just did a Librarything.com "Will you like it" prediction and it came up with "Probably Not"!!!.

I really enjoyed Khaled Hosseini's "A Thousand Splendid Suns" and "The Kite Runner" has been on my wishlist for sometime. So here goes :-)


Thanks TaxManager for making it an ex-wishlist book :-)

Wow, what a book. I'm glad it arrived on a Friday, and I didn't have to worry about going to work bleary-eyed the next day. I read it from cover to cover into the wee hours this morning. Needless to say, I found it very compelling reading, like "A Thousand Splendid Suns", I just had to find out what was going to happen next to the characters. Amir certainly is imperfect, but I didn't find that I disliked him.

I really find that I enjoy reading about life in Afganistan, particularly Kabul, prior to the Russian invasion. It is incredibly sad what has happened, and continues to happen, to that country and it's people.

There are some very convenient circular plot devices used, I'm not proud of myself for liking them, but I do :-)

I dont want to spoil it for others by giving too much away, so I won't say much more.

Also, I can see the reasons why you didn't like it Taxmanager, I think that this really is a book that a reader would either really like or dislike. I'm so pleased that you flung it my way, though the very cute bookmark that you included with the book didn't get much use :-)

I think Mr Freepages will want to read it next to see why I refused to put the light out last night. Then I'll offer it up as a ray.

Note to self: Never buy a book by this Author mid-week! Getting up for work the next day will be too differcult ;-)



Paperback. 324 pages. A readers guide is included.
Read Jan 23-24.

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Jan 28. ETA. Before the Bookray starts my Aunt & Uncle are going to borrow it. My Uncle was in Kabul in the 1970s as one of those hippie travellers mentioned in the book. I'm interested to have his thoughts.

Offering this as a Bookray

Participants

rmjwold (Canberra, Australia)
bookseekerAT (Sydney, Australia) (Aus only ship)

And off into the wild or whatever you please :-)

Briz-cowgirl (Brisbane, Australia)(please skip, obtained a copy)

BOOKRAY Completed.
:-)

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Good day for flying kites in Canberra. Hot, sunny and very windy.

Delivered to rmjwold today.

Enjoy. :-)

Thanks! Looking forward to reading this :-)

Wow - what a great story. I didn't like the main character either but just had to keep reading to see what happened to them all. When I read a book such as this it makes me think how lucky I am in the lottery of birth that I am an Australian.

Will send to bookseekerAT this weekend.

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Sent to bookseekerAT as bookring

Received in the mail yesterday and really looking forward to reading it!

Now I know why people have been talking about this book! I had been waiting for a weekend when I did not have too much on, as I gathered this would be a not-to-be-put-down book...and what a good decision! Started it yesterday and finished it today. I found the story moving, distressing and disturbing, but most of all, well worth reading. Such a powerful story together with the backdrop of recent history in Afghanistan, and the poignancy of people forced from their homeland....a very sobering reminder of what is happening in a faraway place. Given recent deaths of Australians in Afghanistan, even more important for as many of us as possible to gain at least some understanding of what has happened to this country.

I see that I am the last on the list. Some others in my family want to read it, then I will send it on a journey. Thanks to all for sharing.

Book will soon be starting its journey on another ray

Reading order so far:
Elddau1 (here now)
Dancesports
Bekoh (skip as now owns copy of own)
D-face

Arrived yesterday, thanks so much bookseekerAT.
(And many thanks again to FreePages for sharing her wonderful books.)

I've read A Thousand Splendid Suns and it was my highest rated book for this year, so I'm really looking forward to this.

I've got a run of bookrings and have got caught up with Christmas doings that are not giving me much reading time I'm afraid, so I will need another couple of weeks, if that's ok.
Happy jingle cheers everyone.

I have finished this powerful book and will post it to Dancesports in the next couple of days when I have checked her address. Hopefully it will be cooler by then too for the walk to the Post Office. ;-)

(I will add my thoughts about the book below.)

Another very powerful book by Khaled Hosseini. Not for the feint hearted.
I wasn’t as struck by it as much as A Thousand Splendid Suns though. (I don’t know what it was - something about it felt a little contrived? the final scene a little too Hollywood?)

As I was reading it I felt the story was complete when they left Afghanistan. The rest of the book seemed slow for me. It was almost a Part 2 or Book 2 - What Happened After... On review, maybe the last part was necessary to show the change in trust between Amir and Sohrab and to give them an inter-relatedness, as they had now done something in return for each other.

Overall Hosseini is a stunning writer. A good storyteller but of disturbing events and the complex depths of human nature, so his books stay with you for a long time afterwards. I recommend The Kite Runner - but I think it’s best to read it before A Thousand Splendid Suns, as Hosseini's 2nd book is even more masterful.

Thanks to all before me for the opportunity to read this.

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Sending to Dancesports in tomorrow's post. *Hand waving across Bass Strait*

book has arrived safely; now in my tbr pile and a quick handwave back across Bass strait.

Well my thoughts on this book are similar to TaxManager's, I found it difficult to get started with the book and I also found Amir difficult to like. But once into the book then I did find it faster pace and there was cleverness in the writing.

Received today from Dancesports, all the way from Tassie!
Thanks Dancesports and thanks again for the postcard.
Looking forward to read having seen the movie which I loved, but seeing some of the reader comments I might be disappointed.

This is a wonderful book, painful at times, but beautifully told. The movie was very faithful to the novel. I have not read "a Thousand Splendid Suns", given the supportive reviews I will have to add that to my wishlist. The main character is not pleasant and even the rescued boy is not an easy character, but it is an uplifting story and it seems real as it not too neat or easy.

I am the lucky last on this book ray, so I am sending it onto Goofbunny who has it on her wishlist.

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I was lucky last on this bookray, so I am sending this lovely book onto goofbunny who has it on her wishlist.

Thanks, D-face, for sending this wishlist book! Barbara Kingsolver's book is on its way to you.