Book review

And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

Published by Bloomsbury

ONE of the most widely read and beloved novelists in the world, Khaled Hosseini has written another novel, And the Mountains Echoed, set in Afghanistan.

The author of The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns, says of his latest book:

``My earlier novels were, at heart, tales of fatherhood and motherhood. My new novel is a multi-generational family story as well, this time revolving around brothers and sisters, and the ways in which they love, wound, betray, honour and sacrifice for each other.''

Beginning in Afghanistan in 1952, the book tells the story of siblings Abdullah and Pari who live with their impoverished father and step-mother in a small village where they struggle through brutal winters.

Abdullah will do anything for his little sister, even trading his only pair of shoes for a beautiful feather for her collection.

One day their father takes them across the desert to Kabul, setting in motion events that tear their young lives apart.

The story crosses generations and continents, from Kabul to Paris, to San Fransisco, the Greek islands, tracing the events that shape the lives of Abdullah, Pari and those close to them.

It is a wonderful read, adventurous, tumultous and heart-breaking.