A touching tale of family love

And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini. 

Afghanistan, 1952. Abdullah and his sister Pari live with their father and stepmother in the village of Shadbagh. Their father, Saboor, is constantly in search of work and they struggle together through poverty. To Abdullah, Pari is everything. More like a parent than a brother, Abdullah will do anything for her.

In this tale revolving around not just parents and children, but brothers and sisters, cousins and caretakers, Hosseini explores the many ways in which families nurture, wound, betray, honour and sacrifice for one another. And especially how often we are surprised by the actions of those closest to us, at the times that matter most.

Following its characters and the ramifications of their lives and choices and loves around the globe -from Kabul to Paris to San Francisco to the Greek island of Tinos- the story expands gradually outward, becoming more emotionally complex and powerful.