And the Mountains Echoed

By: Khaled Hosseini

Narrated by: Khaled Hosseini, Navid Negahban, Shohreh Aghdashloo

On May 21, 2013, the new novel from Khaled Hosseini: an unforgettable story about finding a lost piece of yourself in someone else.

Khaled Hosseini, the number-one New York Times best-selling 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 passing minute.

©2013 Khaled Hosseini (P)2013 Penguin Audio

Does the End Justify the Means

Hosseini writes and narrates an amazing and morally complex novel, hooking you from the start. A dark fairytale sets the scene for the many stories to come. The reader is once again in Afghanistan, but the trip feels completely different from "The Kite Runner" which was a unlike "A Thousand Splendid Suns". You also travel to other destinations and times as the seemingly disparate stories tie together.

What astounds me about this novel is how complex, thoughtful, and new are the scenarios and characters. While many authors churn out the same books year after year because the market supports this (i.e. Sparks or Piccoult), Hosseini took his time to create thought-provoking characters grappling with insurmountable odds.

In the beginning, a father faces a devastating loss and must choose the right path for his children. A choice he'll remember and possibly regret for the rest of his days. The overall theme is of making difficult decisions and living with the consequences. It begs the question, "does the end justify the means"? I won't give more details as not to spoil the experience. I found this novel rich, thought-provoking, haunting, and powerful.

Storytelling at its best

I find the writing of Khaled Hosseini to be magical and this book does not disappoint. However, if you are expecting a similar book to the previous two by this author, don't.

This book is very different. The style is different, whereas, there is no stand out scene nor is there a build up to a conclusion. It is the story of various characters, each separate and distinct from one another, but there is are threads that connect the characters to one another. The storytelling is beautiful. Imagine yourself sitting outside on a beautiful day under a tree with your grandmother or grandfather telling you stories about your ancestry. That's how I felt listening to this book.

Hosseini weaves the themes of family, heritage and guilt throughout the character's stories and the how and why each deals with these themes is interesting and thought provoking.

There are so many different facets to this novel that I enjoyed that it will take me some time to reflect on them. I will be recommending this to my friends and look forward to discussing the book with them. A solid 4.5 rating from me...I thoroughly enjoyed two of the three narrators. The third was not bad, I just enjoyed him less.

Prepare your heart

I loved this book from beginning to end. The narration was perfect, except for one section where, for some reason, Navid Negahban’s accent seemed to get strong enough to be distracting. That said, I could not imagine listening to the book without these voices. Shohreh Aghdashloo’s musky tones are particularly mesmerizing and I was glad it ended with her.

The story—about family; about duty; about losses and loves that “echo” forever; about bonds broken, sometimes irrevocably and sometimes not—starts in the fifties and follows the characters until the present, except “follows” is the wrong word since this tale is not told chronologically. You are with one character, leave him or her to go visit another, rediscover that person again at another time and place and get glimpses of what has transpired while you were away. Back and forth until the story comes to a close about which I can’t really say much without spoiling it. Suffice it to say that Hosseini pulls a forgotten memento out of his pocket and makes the moment magical. You gasp, in awe.

The language is lyrical. The emotions are true and poignant. At one point, I was listening while driving and broke down in tears (pretty embarrassing since it was in broad daylight). At another, I felt compelled to stop reading and call my mother who lives in another state just to say hello in the middle of the day. Hosseini reminds you how easy it is to lose the thread that binds us. To take care.

I hope it doesn’t take him six years to write another gem.

Intense

Hosseini is a masterful storyteller. He seriously weaves stories that break your heart and leave you exhausted from pondering. If you have read and enjoyed his previous works, this book will not disappoint you. It’s a piece of art. I found this to be not as sorrowful as his previous works. That’s not to say that it’s upbeat. I think the area he chooses to base his stories in doesn’t allow for your average feel good stories. This reads like linked short stories when actually it's family story that spans generations and travels in circles.

I will not spoil the beauty for you by telling way too many details.

I immediately was hooked. There were several times that I got a bit nervous while listening that I worried that my adoration for the work was about to take a bad turn; the next narrator was difficult to acclimate to at first or a new chapter took a little while to suck me up. Those fears left soon and each chapter left me claiming that was my most favorite.

Couldn`t go on due to the narrator`s strong accent

Would you try another book from Khaled Hosseini and/or the narrators?

i`ve read the Kite runner and A thousand splendid suns. BOTH awesome!

What didn’t you like about the narrators’s performance?

old voices, strong accent, a bit of misspelling

Master Storyteller Misses the Mark

I loved The Kite Runner, and really enjoyed A Thousand Splendid Suns, but I just couldn't get into Khaled Hosseini's latest novel And the Mountains Echoed. The overarching story is of a brother and sister, but the many parallel and connecting stories dragged down the narrative. I understand what Mr. Hosseini was trying to do and in some cases it works. He is a master story teller and some of these side stories were incredible, while others felt flat.

My biggest problem with this book was that I never felt a relationship with any of the characters. I always wondered when we would get back to the main story arch and when we did it always felt underwhelming. This is still a good novel but no where up to the caliber of his past work.

riveting story but the narration needs work

I loved this book just like all of Mr Hosseinis previous books. But I got lost because of the pronounciation of in a few chapters read by Mr. Negahban. I hope someone makes this book into a movie. I think it's a riveting story.

Exotic, Melodious and Intertwined

Would you listen to And the Mountains Echoed again? Why?

Yes - it is so nice to have this very different view of a country from the inside out. It is not all about conflict and terrorists. Imagine that. It's about people like us, real thinking and feeling people living in a different yet beautiful culture and environment.

What about the narrators’s performance did you like?

I loved their speaking voices and at times difficult English. I walked around imitating their accents. I wanted to hear more.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Lifetime connections built on moments in time

Disjointed

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

I wouldn't recommend this to a friend because the story jumps between time and charator and can be difficut to follow. I was disappointed as I love this author's books in the past I didn't finish the book and went onto another.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The mother (or perhaps the adoptive mother) and the main charactor.

What three words best describe the narrators’s voice?

warm, interesting and in charactor.

Could you see And the Mountains Echoed being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

No

Any additional comments?

No

Great Book, Hard to understand narrators

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Unfortunately, this lovely book is VERY difficult to understand due to the heavy accents of most of the narrators. I gave up half way through, it was too much, and I will have to read this instead.