Historical+Fiction

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 * Historical Fiction:**

//A Thousand Splendid Suns// By Tanner Rice From the author who brought you //The Kite Runner//, Hosseini's newest novel, //A Thousand Splendid Suns//, gives readers a look in a woman's life in Afghanistan under Taliban control. Set around 1960, the two protagonists' (Mariam and Laila) lives are changed dramatically, when they are forced to wed a possesive and violent widower named Rasheed. As a female, this novel truly pulled at my heart-strings and made me think about how horribly Afghan women were treated. //A Thousand Splendid Suns// contains a fair amount of Farsi vocabulary (which is translated) and appears to be geared toward female readers. There are many chapters, but each one is only a few pages long and the text is easily understood by those with at least a 6th grade vocabulary. I recommend this novel to anyone, regardless of gender, race, or religion, it's a must read!!! I give Hosseini's long awaited and fantastic novel a 5 out of 5 stars! - Melissa Cruz

// Things Fall Apart // By Chinua Achebe In the African village of Umoufia, a strong and proud warrior named Okonkwo lives with his wives and children and is proud of all that he has done and his ancestors. However, he is often too manly and has two great fears: weakness and laziness, both of which were traits of his despised father. Okonkwo's life begins to go bad when white men arrive from Europe and begin destroying African culture. As more and more Africans become Christian each day, Okonkwo must decide either to give in to the new European customs, or to fight and preserve the tradition of his ancestors and his reputation. I really liked this book because of its plot and connections to Europe's history of involvement in Africa. I think it is a good read for young adults and up. I give it 4 stars. - John K.