Two weeks after September 11th, award-winning journalist Asne Seierstad went to Afghanistan to report on the conflict there. In the following spring she returned to live with an Afghan family for several months. For more than twenty years Sultan Khan defied the authorities - be they communist or Taliban - to supply books to the people of Kabul. He was arrested, interrogated and imprisoned by the communists and watched illiterate Taliban soldiers burn piles of his books in the street. He even resorted to hiding most of his ...
Read More
Two weeks after September 11th, award-winning journalist Asne Seierstad went to Afghanistan to report on the conflict there. In the following spring she returned to live with an Afghan family for several months. For more than twenty years Sultan Khan defied the authorities - be they communist or Taliban - to supply books to the people of Kabul. He was arrested, interrogated and imprisoned by the communists and watched illiterate Taliban soldiers burn piles of his books in the street. He even resorted to hiding most of his stock in attics all over Kabul. But while Khan is passionate in his love of books and hatred of censorship, he is also a committed Muslim with strict views on family life. As an outsider, Seierstad is able to move between the private world of the women - including Khan's two wives - and the more public lives of the men. And so we learn of proposals and marriages, suppression and abuse of power, crime and punishment. The result is a gripping and moving portrait of a family, and a clear-eyed assessment of a country struggling to free itself from history.
Read Less
Add this copy of Bookseller of Kabul to cart. $5.33, new condition, Sold by EB-Books LLC rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Rockford, IL, UNITED STATES, published 2004 by Back Bay Books.
Add this copy of The Bookseller of Kabul to cart. $8.76, new condition, Sold by Book Outlet rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Jefferson City, TN, UNITED STATES, published 2004 by Back Bay Books.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
New in new dust jacket. New, Publisher overstock, may have small remainder mark. Excellent condition, never read, purchased from publisher as excess inventory.
Add this copy of The Bookseller of Kabul to cart. $8.99, new condition, Sold by upickbooks/Daisy Li rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Daly City, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2004 by Back Bay Books.
Add this copy of The Bookseller of Kabul to cart. $9.24, new condition, Sold by GreatBookPrices rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Columbia, MD, UNITED STATES, published 2004 by Back Bay Books.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
New. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 320 p. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
Add this copy of The Bookseller of Kabul Format: Paperback to cart. $11.32, new condition, Sold by Websew Inc rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Avenel, NJ, UNITED STATES, published 2004 by Back Bay Books.
Add this copy of The Bookseller of Kabul to cart. $12.29, new condition, Sold by Ingram Customer Returns Center rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from NV, USA, published 2004 by Back Bay Books.
Add this copy of The Bookseller of Kabul to cart. $13.43, new condition, Sold by Ambis Enterprises LLC rated 3.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Benton Harbor, MI, UNITED STATES, published 2004 by Back Bay Books.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
New. Brand New! Not Overstocks or Low Quality Book Club Editions! Direct From the Publisher! We're a small town bookstore that loves books and loves it's customers! Buy from US! Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 320 p.
Add this copy of The Bookseller of Kabul (Paperback Or Softback) to cart. $13.64, new condition, Sold by BargainBookStores rated 3.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Grand Rapids, MI, UNITED STATES, published 2004 by Back Bay Books.
In the U.S. we hear glib references to the denial of rights to Afghan women, with the requirement to wear the burka or be accompanied by a male relative in public often cited. Asne Seierstad's intimate access to this "middle class" Afghan family shows that the denial of rights goes to the very core of individuality: women denied the right to even voice an opinion about whom they will marry (or when), whether they can go to school at all and weather they can work. Even in this family headed by an educated man, absolute male authority prevails. If the father isn't available, the eldest son decides. The relatively well-off women in this family were little more than domestic prisoners. And this portrait was drawn the first spring after the Taliban were driven from Afghanistan. I suspect conditions are vastly worse now.
Ada M
Mar 1, 2011
A learning experience
I am glad Asne wrote this book. We need to know more about the life style of families in the middle east. I am loaning to friends and suggested the book for a book club I belong to.
pamela1717
Apr 13, 2008
Informative.
Perhaps I shouldn't have read this book just on the heels of Persian Girls because it was too easy to make comparisons. Although not as well written as PG I found it very educational. I liked the juxtaposition of admiration and disgust I felt for the "Bookseller". It just illuminated how cultures are so vastly different--how someone "advanced" in one society can be seen as "backward" in another. Initially I was afraid the book would only focus on the oppression of women but I was glad to see it depicted problems the men have as well (when you aren't the eldest male of the family). Again, makes me thankful to be where I am today. May have given it 5 stars except it seemed somewhat fictionalized (my take only) compared to other non-fiction books I've read.
YellowTie
Jun 7, 2007
Awesome Book!
This is a fantastic book to read. I finished reading it in two days because I was not able to put it down, and I have recommended the book to everyone I know. It has opened my eyes to a different way of life outside the US, and it has inspired me to continue reading more books about Middle Eastern culture.
Laura
Apr 3, 2007
Just the beginning
This is an interesting book describing life inside an Afghan household. The writer has a chance to live with a family in Kabul and share everyday life with the member of the family. She writes about the challenges of being a family member in Afghanistan -- not only women but also men under the rule of a patriarch. However, the most interesting part of this book is the research to be done afterwards. The fallout after the book touches everyone -- the family and the author. As with most situations in life, there are two sides -- if not more -- to the story. It is a good lesson on the effects of the observer on the observed.
