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Jump to navigationJump to searchThe Patience Stone by Atiq Rahimi (view source)
Revision as of 16:24, 24 December 2009
, 16:24, 24 December 2009no edit summary
Set in Afghanistan, ''The Patience Stone'' is a partly allegorical tale of a Muslim wife tending to her comatose soldier husband who has been shot in the neck. As she cares for him, for the first time ever she is able to speak to him without fear of censorship and he becomes, for her, like the mythical Patience Stone to which you tell your troubles and when the stone finally bursts, you are free from your torments. But also this might mean the Apocalypse.
The obvious literary link is with Khaled Hosseini, author of [[''The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini|The Kite Runner]] '' and [[A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini|A Thousand Splendid Suns]]. Obvious in that, like Hosseini's works, this is set in Afghanistan and deals with the censorship of women there. Indeed, Hosseini provides a brief, thoughtful introduction to this English translation which has been beautifully translated from the French in which it was written by Polly McLean.
But if like me, you agree with Jill's Bookbag that some of Hosseini's works can be a bit over-theatrical and melodramatic, then this is the exact opposite. The Patience Stone is set almost entirely in one room - the bedroom of the husband and just about the only character who talks is the wife (they are referred to as ''Man'' and ''Woman'' throughout). We are not even told on which side the Man was fighting or who he was fighting (although it appears to be a civil war rather than Western aggressors). This gives the book a strong focus that makes it feel that you are truly in the mind of the Woman throughout.
