Imprint Friday: And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

Welcome to Imprint Friday and today's featured imprint: Riverhead Books. Stop by each week to be introduced to a must-read title from one of my favorite imprints. I know you'll be adding many of these books to your wish list.

I doubt I have to introduce you to Khaled Hosseini or even talk about why his new novel, And the Mountains Echoed, was on my must list for this month. Once I started reading this much-anticipated book, which begins with a fairy tale, I was lost in Afghanistan's world of contrasts.

Here's the publisher's summary:

Khaled Hosseini, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns, has written a new novel about how we love, how we take care of one another, and how the choices we make resonate through generations. In this tale revolving around not just parents and children but brothers and sisters, cousins and caretakers, Hosseini explores the many ways in which families nurture, wound, betray, honor, and sacrifice for one another; and how often we are surprised by the actions of those closest to us, at the times that matter most. Following its characters and the ramifications of their lives and choices and loves around the globe—from Kabul to Paris to San Francisco to the Greek island of Tinos—the story expands gradually outward, becoming more emotionally complex and powerful with each turning page.

Hosseini asks a simple question: How far would you go to save your family and children? In 1952, Saboor, a poor Afghan villager, makes the heart-wrenching decision to sell his young daughter to a childless upper-class couple in Kabul, setting off ripples (echoes) that will affect both families for more than half a century.

One of the distinguishing features of And the Mountains Echoed is its structure, which consists of a series of non-chronological character studies played out against Afghan history and the diaspora. Together these studies make up a linear tale involving love and loss, hope and despair.

Because Hosseini gives each person in this story of family, betrayal, and hidden truths his or her own voice, we come to know the characters and the defining moments of their lives from different perspectives and in different time periods. In this way, Hosseini builds a multidimensional world that makes it easy for us to see the many sides of Afghanistan, from the poor villagers to the richest political bigwigs and from the people who chose to stay despite the conflicts to those who fled to the safety and freedoms of Europe and America.

Celebrating in turn the joys and and strengths of family bonds and the heart-breaking sadness when family and friends prove false, Hosseini's And the Mountains Echoed packs an emotional punch that leaves us momentarily stunned, as we take in the far-reaching consequences of a few simple acts.

Riverhead Books is a featured imprint on Beth Fish Reads. For more information about the imprint, visit the Riverhead website. While there, explore their terrific book list, check out authors in the news, and view some fun videos. Stay in the know by following them on Tumblr, Facebook, and Twitter.

Buy And the Mountains Echoed at an indie or other bookstore near you.
Published by Penguin USA / Riverhead, 2013
ISBN-13: 9781594631764
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