Kabul was a thriving cosmopolitan city with its vibrant artistic, intellectual and cultural life. There were poets, musicians, and writers. There was also an influx of western culture, art, and literature in the '60s and '70s.

True redemption is...when guilt leads to good.

Laila has moved on. Because in the end she knows that’s all she can do. That and hope.

Perspective [is] a luxury when your head [is] constantly buzzing with a swarm of demons.

A society has no chance of success if its women are uneducated.

Sad stories make good books

America was different. America was a river, roarng along, unmindful of the past. I could wade into this river, let my sins drown to the bottom, let the waters carry me someplace far. Someplace with no ghosts, no memories, and no sins.