And the Mountains Echoed question

This book really moved me! The relationship between the siblings, and the immense loss of Abdullah was very touching, especially since it made me think a lot of my own two children (a boy and a girl with a strong bond between them). I got so moved by the story that I sometimes woke up in night with a strong anxiety...

I agree with Susan about the important question in the book; to care or not and weather that is a conscious choice. Very interesting also to think about Abdullahs Alzheimer as a salvation similar to the forget-drug that the father in the prologue got from the monster.

Our bookclub read this last year and we all loved this book - the writing is fantastic - the characters are well-defined and relatable (at least to me). The story is like life - sometimes hard, sometimes sad but mostly beautiful.

I hope you give this a try.

One of my favorite books. Well written. I remember when I finished actually saying out loud "now that was a good book" :)

I absolutely loved this book. It is now one of my all time favorites, and I have spent a great deal of time thinking about it.

Some of my points for pondering: Wonderful, wonderful book. It was interesting noting the "echoes" in the lives of people who are connected, but separated by circumstances.

The book is not about Abdullah and Pari. They are one set of people connected to the original story told by their father. If you lose someone, is it better to remember or forget? Could the something you love be your home? Do you stay and care for the injured/old, or do you go off and live your own life? Does it take a special kind of person to care for the sick? Is helping someone die a part of caring for the sick? Do the sick have a right to commit suicide? Why are some people more loved than others?

++CONTAINS SPOILERS**;
Look at all the injured/old in the book, and the people who care for them or abandon them. (I am sorry, but I am terrible with names.) The girl pushed out of the tree -- her brother runs away to the city to avoid caring for her, her sister cares for her but actually caused her injury. That same brother spends years caring for his sick boss, while the boss's wife runs away. The doctor can't bring himself to help the girl with her head bashed in, but his brother does. Pari 2 sacrifices her own life to care for her aged parents. Markos can't bear the thought of caring for his aged mother, but the girl who was mauled by the dog and is left by her own mother cares for Markos's mother.

They are the echoes of an old story.

Funny...I read this book in the last couple of months and can barely recall it now. That says to me that it did not make much of an impact for me. However, I think I would have benefited from discussing it with someone. Your questions, Susan, raise some fascinating ideas and I need to ponder them. Especially, your final question about why some people are more loved than others. Maybe it is not that they are more loved; maybe, it has to do with who is doing the loving. Although the question does bring to mind a young lady I know with a significant handicap. But, when she enters a room, she truly fits the cliche of "lighting up the room." Everyone loves her with minutes. It is her radiant smile and her genuine commitment to connecting with the people around her.

This book has really made me understand what some people have to go through in order to help there family. This book is written very well, how you get views from certain people. i would recommend this book to other people!!