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Afghan-American novelist Hosseini follows up his bestselling The Kite Runner with another searing epic of Afghanistan in turmoil. The story covers three decades of anti-Soviet jihad, civil war and Taliban tyranny through the lives of two women. Mariam is the scorned illegitimate daughter of a wealthy businessman, forced at age 15 into marrying the 40-year-old Rasheed, who grows increasingly brutal as she fails to produce a child. Later, Rasheed takes another wife, 14-year-old Laila, a smart and spirited girl whose only other options, after her parents are killed by rocket fire, are prostitution or starvation. Against a backdrop of unending war, Mariam and Laila become allies in an asymmetrical battle with Rasheed, whose violent misogyny-"There was no cursing, no screaming, no pleading, no surprised yelps, only the systematic business of beating and being beaten"-is endorsed by custom and law.
Hosseini gives a forceful but nuanced portrait of a patriarchal despotism where women are agonizingly dependent on fathers, husbands and especially sons, the bearing of male children being their sole path to social status. His tale is a powerful, harrowing depiction of Afghanistan, but also a lyrical evocation of the lives and enduring hopes of its resilient characters.
畅销小说《追风筝的人》的作者、阿富汗裔美国作家卡勒德·胡赛尼将于2007年5月22日出版新作《灿烂千阳》。 这部小说以反苏杰哈德、阿富汗内战和塔利班专政为背景，讲述了两个女人的一生。
Mariam和Laila生活在一个家长专制的社会里，那里的女人都要服从自己的父亲、丈夫和儿子，只有生儿子才能让她们获得社会地位。对于她们的丈夫Rasheed来说，“在我这里，不允许诅咒、尖叫、恳求和嚎叫，只有每日例行的打与被打。”而这一暴行是社会和法律认可的。
该书的出版社Riverhead评价此书为一部“阿富汗30年历史的揪心记录，一部关于家庭、友谊、信念和因爱得救的极其动人的故事。”
About Author
Khaled Hosseini was born in Kabul, Afghanistan, and moved to the United States in 1980. His first novel, The Kite Runner, was an international bestseller, published in thirty-eight countries. In 2006 he was named a goodwill envoy to UNHCR, the United Nations Refugee Agency. He lives in northern California.
卡勒德·胡赛尼出生在阿富汗的喀布尔，1980年移居美国。他的处女作《追风筝的人》畅销全球，陆续在38个国家出版发行。2006年，他被任命为联合国难民事务高级专员(办事处)亲善大使，目前居住在加州北部。
(实习生 江巍）
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