My Rating: 8/10Kabul, under the Taliban, a devastated city ruled by executioners and crows, where laughing in pu
blic brings down the wrath of the religious police. This is the world in which Yasmina Khadra- the pseudonym of a former officer in the Algerian Army- sets this cauterizing novel of fanaticism and tenderness.
With an implacable eye, Khadra follows two couples: Mohsen and Zunaira are dispirited survivors of Afghanistan’s educated middle class; Atiq is a brutish jailor bound by a debt of gratitude to his dying wife, Mussarat. One day the horrified Mohsen finds himself taking part in the stoning of a condemned prostitute, an action that will be impel all four characters towards new destinies.
I found this book a work of haunting power. It is written in a very simple yet powerful language. The details of stoning women to death are so dolorous and hard-to-believe…the emotions described through words are so expressive that you can feel them. The author uses present tense to talk about the events happening in Taliban. All in all, a wonderful book to read.
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Excerpt from the book:
...Mohsen Ramat hesitates for a long time before he decides to join the crowd gathering in the square. The authorities have announced the public execution of a prostitute: She is to be stoned to death. A few hours earlier, workers came to the execution site to unload wheelbarrows filled with rocks and dig a small hole about two feet deep..."
