Miriam is a fifteen-year-old Afghani girl who has had a troubled upbringing. Mariam’s mother, Nana, was a housekeeper for a very wealthy man named Jalil. Nana became pregnant with Jalil’s baby, Miriam, and has suffered great shame. She and Mariam had to move out of town into a very small cottage, away from Jalil and his wives and children. Ever since birth, Nana has been calling Miriam a “harami.” Mariam did not know what this word meant but later found out it meant bastard child. Miriam was visited by her father on Thursdays and her father would tell her stories about Herat. She loved her life but wanted more. So she decided, for her birthday, when she wanted to go into town and see a movie in her father’s cinema. Her mother said she would die if she went, but Mariam did not listen nor believed her and went. She came back to see that her mother had hung herself. The next thing she knew her father made her get married to this older man and move to a different city (Kabul). She faced many hardships with her new husband, like abuse and a miscarriage.
The inclusion of Arabic words in the text makes you think and use context clues to find out what they mean. Also, the text showed hints and made the thought of gender roles. Some examples from the text include, “The next morning, Rasheed wanted to invite his friends over for dinner to celebrate… She was in her room by the early evening before the men arrived.” Rasheed invites other men to share his excitement, instead of inviting both his and Miriam's friends. Not only this, but completely excludes her from the celebration. Also, he only wants a son, not a daughter. (this way his name could be passed on). These are just a few of the ways the text makes you think about gender roles played in this book.
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This section also includes many important and sad moments, one of many including how Mariam’s mother hung herself. This left Mariam feeling so alone and depressed since she loved her mother very much. Also, Mariam's father barely acknowledges her and ships her off to marry a man to get rid of her. This man was abusive, and when everything seemed to be going right, Mariam had a miscarriage. These moments of hardships and heartache Mariam faces contribute to the overall theme of this book. Although she goes through tough times, Mariam never gives up and maintains strength. She pushes through her hardships and perseveres to maintain strength and accept fate.
Throughout the chapters, you find out that Miriam’s husband is abusive. There might be a frightful scene in which her husband will hurt and abuse her. This is because Miriam had a recent miscarriage, and he might blame her for causing it (even though the doctor had said there was no real reason it happened). I would like to ask the author what was the reason for Mariam's miscarriage. She was so happy to be with the child, and things were finally getting better for her. It felt as if this ruined the flow.
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