Discussion questions for Khaled Hosseini's 'A Thousand Splendid Suns'

Greetings bookmates,

The questions for this Saturday's SBC meeting are -

1. I could not understand Mariam's father. he obviously loved Mariam and visited her weekly, but did not help her out when she most needed it. Was it just because he was weak or didn't want his reputation ruined? Or did his wives have a lot of influence in the household?
2. Was Rasheed just a product of his own evil personality or of the country and culture he grew up in, in a 'Pre-Soviet Invasion" Afghanistan?
3. Throughout the book, there were about 4 different regimes that had control in Afghanistan. The monarchy, the Soviets, then a civil war and then the Taliban. Which was the best and worst for the civilian population?
4. The rules, issued by the Taliban, about what people could and could not do, was astonishing. What would the educated woman living in Kabul have done at this time?
5. I found that there were a few emotional moments in the book when I needed some tissues. Which moments affected you the most?
6. Nana on page 17, said that "There is only one, one skill a woman like you and me needs in life, and they don't teach it in school."..."only one skill. And it's this tahamul . Endure." How true do  you think that was?
7. How would you describe Mariam and Laila's friendship? 
8. Who was your favourite character?
9. Were you satisfied with the ending of the book? Was it too much of a 'happy ending'? Maybe not very realistic compared with the rest of the book?
10. How do you rate the book from 1 to 5?    

P.S. The good news Gail is bringing a friend who spent 18 years in Afghanistan, which is great as this add will add some depth to our discussion.

cheers Nat                

SBC Notes from People of the Book

I am not sure whether our notes will match the actual discussion but here goes.

Q1.

contrast new /old world Europe/Australia

lighter moments from the present part

main character from the other side of the world,  helps reader identify with the book

Q2.

general opinion not too graphic,  could have been worse.

Made it real & had an impact, made reader appreciate what we have

Q3

Infiqya - interesting, fascinating information, interesting way to learn history, makes you look things up in the dictionary

More tolerant of other cultures.

People of the Book, phrase for both Jews & Muslims that follow bible/Koran

Q4

in general no.

Q5

Yes it was an unusual relationship - bit extreme maybe.

Comment made that it was surprising that Hanna didn't make more effort to find her father when she was younger, often teenagers will do this as part of asserting their own identity

Q6

Q7

Book about hiding, everyone seemed to have something to hide; rabbi, chief censor,

survival e.g. the book and Jews, Sarajevo

Book drawn by a Muslim, using Christian imagery for a Jew.

Q8

yes. weak.

Q9 

Because he was a Jew, difference of a opinion on whether it was it conscious or unconscious?

Q10

yes and no

Q11

Most didn't have a favourite character

Q12

Rating out of five, an average of 3.7.

4,4,4,4,3,4,3,3,4,4,4

People of the Book Discussion Questions for Saturday 31st July

Greetings bookmates,

Here a few of the questions received so far for this Saturday's meeting at the Manurewa Library. Looking forward to catching up with you all and hearing your views on the book.
1. With Hanna Heath being the main thread in the book, I found her down-to-earth attitude lightened the mood of an often times dark story. With words and sayings such as; 'Salvo's', 'piss-take', 'libbers' and 'drives me spare'...do we share any of our Aussie neighbours slang?
2. A friend who's also read 'People Of The Book' says she found it quite distasteful at times and thinks the descriptions of the atrocities inflicted on the Jewish people were too graphic. I had to disagree, I thought the author was restrained and her inclusion of these horrible historic events are what made the book believable, informative, emotive and impactful for me. What are your thoughts? Too graphic?

3. Since deciding to come along to the Saturday Book Chats I have re-discovered my love of learning. Many times I found myself enthralled in the history aspect of this book. For example; when reading about a land called 'Ifrqiya' in the 15th century, I wanted to know more so I googled it and discovered it used to be the area comprising of the coastal regions of Libya, Tunisia and Algeria. So this helped me imagine the Jewish migrants setting out from there on their way to Spain. Did you have any 'Google' moments while reading 'People Of The Book'?

4. Early on in the book, Hanna noted that 'the Yuogoslavs were famous as the only migrant group who managed to import their old World grievances' when they arrived in Australia do you think it is possible for migrants to leave their history/bias behind and start a fresh?

5. Hanna’s relationship with her mother, Sarah, was unusual. Can you think of any reason why the author would portray the relationship like that?
6. I noticed that the last historical flashback was told in 1st person whereas the rest were in 3rd person. I wondered why and thought perhaps it maybe because it was the story of the person who created the haggadah. Did anyone else notice and if so, do you think it has any significance?
7. One of the themes I felt came from this book was the theme of persecution - mainly for religion. There is a quote from Hanna's friend Raz that sums it up (page 303): "...you've got a society where people tolerate difference...and everything's humming along...then somehow this fear, this hate, this need to demonize 'the other' - it just sort of rears up and smashes the whole society. Inquisition, Nazis, extremist Serb nationalists...same old, same old. It seems to me the book at this point, bears witness to all that." What was the main theme of the book for you?

8. Do you think Ozren was a believable character?

9. Why do you think Father Vistorini saved the Haggadah?

10. If you were Hanna would you have forgiven Ozren so quickly?

11. Who was/were your favourite character/s and which tale connected with you the most?

12. How do you rate the book from 1 to 5

thanks to all those for contributing to the questions