she held her breath, and in her head, counted seconds. She pretended that for each second she didn’t breathe, God would grant her another day

Whether you do something or decide to do nothing, either way, you are making a moral choice. And I hope people make the right one.

I give novels as gifts, and there is nothing I like to receive more as a gift.

about clichés. Avoid them like the plague.

I started a foundation, called The Khaled Hosseini Foundation. The mission has been to help the most vulnerable groups in Afghanistan. So the focus has been on women, children, and homeless refugees, most of whom are in fact women and children.

Educate yourself, learn about what refugees face when they don't have homes, after they have lost everything.

The impact had cut your upper lip in two, he had said, clean down the middle. Clean down the middle. Like a harelip.