For the Love of a Son by Jean Sasson Book Review

Written by Olivia Richardson: 10-June-2010

advertisement ^

From the bestselling author of Princess comes the heartbreaking story of one woman's search for her little boy...

From the time she was a little girl, Maryam rebelled against the second-class existence that was her destiny as an Afghan woman. Although she grew up in a privileged family, she had witnessed the miserable fate of her grandmother and 3 aunts, and wished she had been born a boy.

As a feisty teenager in Kabul, she was outraged when the Russians invaded her country. After she made a public show of defiance, she had to flee the country for her life.

A new life of freedom in America seemed within her grasp, but her father had other ideas and arranged a traditional marriage to a fellow Afghan, who turned out to be a violent man.

Beaten, raped and abused, Maryam found joy in the birth of a baby son. She escaped her brutal husband, but he kidnapped their little boy, and stole him away far beyond her reach. For many long years she searched for her lost son, while hearing the most terrible stories of civil war and Taliban oppression from friends and relations back home in Afghanistan.



Set against a landscape littered with tragic tales of horrific suffering, Jean Sasson, author of Princess, chronicles the story of one resolute but tormented woman determined to achieve freedom and equality with men.

Review

I couldn't put this down. It's such a gripping, action-packed, heart-wrenching tale where you read each page with the hope that the next will be happier.

It's inspiring to hear of revolutionary and strong women in such a restrictive environment.

Author Jean Sasson continues her gift of bringing Middle-Eastern women's amazing tales to life in writing. It gives a good history of the turmoil in Afghanistan, giving you more understanding of what women went through there under Taliban rule. Other mothers out there will appreciate the heart-wrenching storyline (true story) and feel a little more compelled to treasure every moment with their own children. 5/5.