Awed by an Author

I feel so fortunate in living at this time, in this place in the world where I have access to magnificent books, and good friends who recommend them. At the same time, I feel a lot of guilt about being so unaware of the actual suffering of other women. Not that I could have done anything, but women as a group could have, and we should have known.
I love our country deeply, but hate the fact that we Americans allow ourselves to be so isolated from the rest of the world. Try learning anything of any depth from the ordinary media. Ha!
All the above was inspired by reading two books written by Kahled Hosseini. They are Kite Runner (about 2005), and A Thousand Splendid Suns (2007)
Both books were heart-breakers. They are set in Afghanistan in the very recent past.
Kite Runner tells the story of two boys who grew up together in an Afghan city. The narrator was the son of a rich man; the other boy the son of a servant. Their friendship is shattered by a betrayal, but the love continues, though unrecognized by one of them. I feel certain that the book is at least somewhat autobiographical, but don't recall any confirmation of that.
A Thousand Splendid Suns tells of two women. We meet them as children of very different backgrounds, but as a young adult (15!), each of them is married to the same man, who is a miserable excuse for a human being. The book tells of living under the Soviet occupation, the Taliban, and all the way to the current situation.
I am not getting old and easily moved to tears, but the author makes you love these women and care deeply about what happens to them. Read it!