What a book!

It's been a long time since I've had a book review for you. In fact, my last book review was over a year ago. So - either I don't seem to finish books very often or I only review books that really impress me. Actually, both are true. I have only finished one other of my book club's selections this year. I read "Women of the Silk" and got through part of "My Antonia". Both books were OK, but the book I just finished, "A Thousand Splendid Suns," made quite an impression. It is a remarkable story about 2 women who withstood lives of great trial, violence, and hardship over the past 30 years in Afghanistan. The author does a phenomenal job of developing the characters of Mariam and Laila, and as I read, I felt like I was transported to Afghanistan into their homes and lives. This is the type of book that makes you think again and again about what a great blessing it is to live in the United States, and even beyond that, what an overwhelming blessing it is to be a woman living in the United States. As I was talking to my mom about this book, she confirmed something I already knew; if I were an Afghan woman, I would have been dead long ago. Women's lives, for the most part, are not valued by a great many of the men in Afghanistan, particularly during the time of the Taliban. A woman could be beaten, killed or imprisoned for speaking her mind or for being on a street without a man, or for defending herself against a violent husband. The book outlines some of the laws that were put into place when the Taliban took over the Afghan government in 1996 - can you even imagine this -

singing is forbidden. dancing is forbidden. writing books, watching films, and painting pictures are forbidden. women - you will stay inside your homes at all times. it is not proper for women to wander aimlessly about the streets. cosmetics are forbidden. jewelry is forbidden. you will not speak unless spoken to. you will not, under any circumstances, show your face. you will cover with burqa when outside. if you do not, you will be severely beaten. you will not make eye contact with men. you will not laugh in public. if you do, you will be beaten. you will not paint your nails. if you do, you will lose a finger. girls are forbidden from attending school. women are forbidden from working.

No wonder my mom says I would have been dead a long time ago. She would have been too! Women did have rights in Afghanistan when it was occupied by the Soviet Union. The communists were good for women - the Muslim extremists are not! This book is hard to read at times because of the violence these women face on a daily basis, but as you read about the trials they face, you become more and more inspired and amazed by the quiet inner strength they possess.

I finished this book last Friday and I could think of little else all day. I had to go find the author's website to learn more about Khaled Hosseini and his book. After learning more about the author, I thought about Brad's cousin, Layne Pace who was deployed in Afghanistan for about a year and a half in 2005, flying a helicopter and offering humanitarian service on the side just because he wanted to do more. I spent some time searching the web, refreshing my memory of what he did during his time in Afghanistan. He was instrumental in bringing a young Afghan boy to the US to receive a life-saving heart surgery, which was a highly publicized event. You can read about that inspiring story HERE. Since his return, he has established (along with others) a charitable organization, called the Tao Project, to build an orphanage in Afghanistan for the thousands of children who have been left without parents because of war.

I am so thankful for a kind and loving husband, for my faith, for my home, for my freedom, for my country. I am thankful I can sing and dance, and laugh, and paint my nails, and wear makeup and jewelry, and talk to men, and go to movies, and show my face in public. In fact, I cannot imagine not having such basic freedoms, yet there are many women throughout the world who live without these freedoms every day. So, so hard to understand . . .

this woman's story touched my soul!

The story of Immaculee Ilibagizia is like none that I have ever read! She is an absolutely incredible woman with a story of survival, strength, faith, and drive that is almost impossible to believe. It is hard for me to even imagine the experiences that she has not only survived, but overcame triumphantly. She has written about her experiences during the Rwandan Holocaust in 1994 in the book "Left to Tell". This was our book club's selection for May, and I am so glad that I read it. Her story is not an easy one to hear, as it is horrendous. But, if you can get through the ugliness of what happens around her, you see the amazing beauty that she possesses.

For hundreds of years, the Tutsi & Hutu tribes have been at odds with each other in Rwanda. There were 2 genocides in the 20th century prior to the one that Immaculee experienced. She is Tutsi and a college student in Rwanda at the time her country turned into absolute mayhem. The Hutu tribe began "exterminating" (as they called it) every Tutsi in Rwanda. They would not stop until every Tutsi was dead. Immaculee was from a very religious family, and it was her faith that got her through this nightmare. She ended up in hiding in a bathroom for 3 months (with 7 other women), while being literally hunted by her neighbors. She lost her entire family, with the exception of one brother who was out of the country at the time. As she tells her story, you learn of her unfailing faith in God. She puts her life in God's hands and witnesses one miracle after another, as her life is preserved. She truly is a miracle, as there were close to 1 million people who lost their lives in this short 3-month time span.

As I got to the end of the book and read about how she emerged from this nightmare and rose to tremendous heights, I felt so inspired. My emotions were stirred at this point, for I could not comprehend what she had been through, and then to see who she is now . . . truly she was preserved by the hand of God and "left to tell" this story to inspire others to forgive and love and reach to heights they never dreamed possible. As I read this story I just kept thinking, "and all the while that she was sitting in a bathroom, I was living my happy & basically care-free life in the United States, not even knowing that thousands upon thousands of people were being killed." It just didn't seem right! Her incredible faith and her ability to forgive made me want to be a better person. My heart and soul were truly touched and I would love to meet this most amazing woman.