I personally like Mariam as a character, because at the beginning of the book, she has faith that her father does truly care about her, and faith in her father is better then carelessness about him. I like her choice to turn her back to him and not look at him when leaving for Kabul with her new husband. I like the fact that she chose not to speak to him when he came to visit her in Kabul. A father is not the figure who makes you, but the one that cares for you all the time, the one who’s there for you, the one who teaches you your manners, the one who’s there for you your first steps and the one who always supports your choices. Jalil is none of that to Mariam, and he deserves no forgiveness from her. Although he may truly care about her, which I do in fact believe, he has still chosen his reputation over her. Mariam is at first a weak character, as she struggles with Rasheed and struggles with fear, but she does remain persistent, she continues to make an effort although Rasheed is always unhappy about everything she does. I particularly like the bond she formed with Laila and the fact that she took care of her and her children along with her. Furthermore, her last act of bravery in killing Rasheed to save Laila is honorable and I respect it.
Rasheed is a disgusting, disrespectful, ugly, mean, violent, egotistical, arrogant, dishonest and cold hearted man. I very much dislike this character as he does not care for his wives, but only what they can provide him with. When Mariam could not provide a child he outcasted her as her father did. He started being more and more violent with her, treated her like she was worth nothing. All he cares about is having another son, he will momentarily care for whatever and whoever can satisfy his will. He deserved his death, as being violent in my eyes is wrong. His perception on political regime is plainly stupid since all he is doing by accepting the Taliban’s takeover is accepting the regression of their society back to where women have no rights, where you must obey a list of strict rules, where freedom is lacked.
This then leads to Laila, another one of my favorite characters along with Tariq, her true lover and father of her daughter. Laila is an intellectual looking to pursue an education. She is a strong character, endures a lot of grief but survives. Although she isn’t respected by her mother or even recognized for that matter, she remains strong and comforts her mother in the time of her brothers’ deaths. She is a little foolish for making love with Tariq without marrying him at such a young age, where neither he nor she could actually provide for the baby. Nonetheless, in my eyes she’s a courageous character. When Rasheed is about to beat Mariam for the first time in the book, she stands up for her even when at that time they did not get along. She has strong morals for which she will stand up for. She is not always afraid of the consequences, she will do anything to provide for her family, including giving her up her daughter to a foster home so that she may eat learn and stay healthy. She would leave home to get beaten over and over by militia men just to go see her daughter as she promised she would do. She is a loyal caring and loving parent. It is for that that I admire her.
Finally we have Tariq, also a very brave character. Tariq isn’t seen a whole lot in the book, but his presence in Laila’s thoughts and dreams make him a vital character. He has always cared for Laila, as a good man should. He stands up for her when needed; he faces bullies with one leg, an act no other character could ever match up to. He doesn’t let his one leg stop him from being who he is, doing the things he does with Laila like going to visit the Buddha statues with Laila and her father. He saves Laila from her savage environment by fulfilling his promise to come back. He provides sanctuary for her, and a loving caring and enjoyable environment as well as a promising future. I admire all of his actions; I can’t say I dislike anything about him, except that it took him so long to come back.