Afganistan
A Thousand Rooms of Dream and Fear
Atiq Rahimi
This story has taken us to Kabul in the late 1970’s and
straight back to the time when the Taliban ruled Afghanistan with an iron rod.
This is not a tale that will tell us of the geography of the country, nor will
it tell of landscaped vistas, or the political background to the tale; we are
thrown straight in. So be ready.
The translators notes in the copy I have, tell me that the
literal translation for a labyrinth in Afghan is ‘A Thousand Rooms’ – you will
certainly enter a labyrinth when you turn the first page here; an excellently
told tale of a terrible tale, but well worth reading.
In a tightly written story, we spend the time with a young
man who has met security police, after curfew, having had a night with friends
and alcohol. Add a youthful arrogance to the mix, and we have a chap beaten and
left for dead on the side of the road. Rescued by a stranger, a lady, he is
hidden in her house, along with her brother, until escape from the country can
be organised. Well, that’s the plot, but certainly not the story.
Rahimi explores how and why the young man appears to be
defying authority, and why he certainly can’t go home and expose his family
now. The lady has a tale to tell as to why she is alone, we hear of her absent husband,
and her hidden brother has been secreted for reasons that we will find out as
the story goes on. It does all sound very dramatic and exciting, but in fact we
are hearing the tales of ordinary people trying to live in extraordinary circumstances;
fear being part of their everyday lives.
As the story progresses, events begin to happen that a
reader would perhaps question; is the plot becoming too whimsical? ‘Would
that really happen like that?’ you might ask. But I think you will be so
sucked in to the lives of these few protagonists that you will almost forgive
the author the literary licence he appears to have taken to move the plot
along. Until the end, when you will understand that it is just as it really
would be...you will need to find and read this book for a full explanation.
This book is an education at many different levels. The
treatment of women by the Taliban at that time is one thread. The ramifications
that can be expected when young men fail to meet the standards set by the
Taliban are also explained and explored. Three different men, three different
endings...
All in all, it is a very well written tale, tight, no words
wasted and still written with a twist in the tale that is in keeping with the
subject; enough to keep us page turning right up to the end. It is not an
action packed, shoot ‘em up type of story, and there is no undue or unnecessary
violence, none the less, the fear leaps out of every sentence spoken, every bang
on the door, every shout from the courtyard. But beware! You might well give an
involuntary start if someone knocks on your door while you are reading this...
So pleased you didn't review the Kite Runner! This is fascinating, I hope you leave all these reviews up for a good long time :-)
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