Summarizer - Kelli - 04/23/10

1) Crime and Punishment - This chapter points out the struggles that Sultan's first wife, Sharifa, faces. After he marries his second wife, she is left in Pakistan while the rest of the family returns to Kabul. Not only does he rarely visit, but he breaks promises to return her home. She discusses that with her time, she often goes to pray and gossip with the neighbors since it is such a small town. One gossip story they share is about a young girl Saliqa who receives love letters from a boy and responds. She later meets up with him and is seen at a park in his company; a "crime" for which she is beaten by her uncle nearly to death. In another story shared, a lady named Jamila is married off to a man living in another country. As she lives with his family, a witness sees a man crawling in her window several times and his items are found. For her "crime," her family kills her. This chapter is written very strongly and really leaves an impression by writing about such sad things with such passion.

2) This entire paragraph is mostly poems where women discuss their secret desires and thoughts. Many of the poems include their hatred for their husband and their wish to be with their love. All of these desires and secrets would be punished if found out. This was written to be very memorable because it is written so differently from other chapters and it includes others' works.

3) This chapter discusses when Sultan finally come to see his first wife in Pakistan. It discusses the dangers and troubles travelling there because of the Taliban. When he arrives, she makes him food and prepares everything. After, they laugh and enjoy each other's company before going to visit many members of the family who were unable to go to Afghanistan, too.

Journal Entry #1 - 04/23/10

The Bookseller of Kabul – Journal Entry #1

We were very surprised with how strict the men are towards women and how they are punished if anyone feels they were “disobedient.” When Jamila married a man who did not live there, she started having what we know of as an affair. Someone claimed they saw a man crawl through her window at night and when the room was checked, some of his things were found. Because of this, the family had a “council meeting.” At this council meeting of her family, everyone, even the mother voted to have her killed because she dishonored the family. After she was killed, most of the evidence that a marriage had taken place was gotten rid of. A young girl named Saliqa was also disobedient because she responded to love letters sent to her. She met him in a taxi and went to a park, although nothing happened, she was severely punished. When her uncle came home, he beat her close to death. Even right away in the beginning of the book, Sultan gets a second wife, against all wishes of the family. Not even his first wife had any say as she was just pushed aside.

These stories give us a better idea of how other cultures live and how women are treated. This information doesn’t necessarily pertain to our lives because in this country we have so many rights as women. Also, it isn’t a man that makes a woman valuable in society but their own personal success.

We believe the author has deeper concentration on the treatment of women than necessarily on men. In the foreword, she vocalizes her struggle in the home because of her feelings on how the women were treated by the men. One of the most interesting things we’ve read about is when Sultan gets a second wife, his first wife who gave him his children, is just left in another country. As much as he promises to send for them, he makes up reasons to still leave her there with her youngest daughter. All of the back stories on the women and their treatment were also very interesting. She focuses a lot on the women’s roles and their struggles than the men’s. Another thing that we enjoyed reading was the poems that they included. The author added in history of the poems and what could and would happened to many of the authors if it was read, especially women authors. The poems showed the women’s hate towards their husbands that they weren’t allowed to vocalize but also the sexual desires the women also felt but were unable to show. Because of the focus on women and their treatment, they would be an ideal audience for reading this book.

Just last week we were talking in class about gender roles and different assumptions the opposite gender had of each other. Although we seemed to point out roles in the US, we also briefly discussed how this could change or be a lot more drastic in other cultures. The ideas in this book will help contribute a lot to the discussion next week that is focused more on women.

“In Afghanistan a woman’s longing for love is taboo. It is forbidden by the tribe’s notion of honor and by the mullahs. Young people have no right to meet, to love, or to choose. Love has little to do with romance; on the contrary, love can be interpreted as committing a serious crime, punishable by death. The undisciplined are cruelly killed. Should only one guilty party be executed, it is invariably the woman.”

This paragraph helps the author transition from the chapter discussing the death and beatings of the girls and also helps introduce the coming chapter. In the coming chapter, it includes the poems in which women discuss their secret thoughts and desires, thoughts that would be punished.

Summary: 4/21/10. By: Brittney Hinner

In the foreward, the book's author, Asne Seierstad gave background information on not only herself, but also Sultan Khan, a.k.a, the bookseller of Kabul. Seierstad during 2001, "spent six weeks in Afganistant with the commandos of the Northern Alliance" and while in Kabul, met Sultan Khan. Khan, was a man whom she became facinated with, due to his stories "about his battles against the different regimes and their censors, how he launched his personal flight, hiding books from the police, lending them out to others-and finally going to prison for it." And, after hearing Khan's stories, an inspired Seierstad decided to write a book about them, and with Sultan Khan's permissin moved in with him and his family.

The first chapter titled The Proposal, goes into detail about how Sultan went about marrying his second wife, Sonya. In this chapter, Seierstad focuses her writing not only on Khan's feelings, but more on the women's feelings. She writes how Sultan Khan's mother, sisters, and first wife, Sharifa disapproved of the engagement. Sharifa, who was not warned before the news of the intended marriage was said to have cried for twenty days, and could not bring herself to attend the wedding. With such a focus on the females and their emotions so early in the book, one may guess that the role of women will continue to be of constant focus of this book.

The second chapter titled Burning Books gives an indepth look at the stories that Seierstad had orginally been facinated with. She writes the stories wile including pieces of historical information within them, that in the end gives the reader a richer knowledge of the situations being discribed.

Graphic Organizer - Kelli - 4/21/2010

In the "arrival" box, it illustrates the opening when she first comes to stay with the family and outlines the entire story. This is very important because it gives the base for the book and gives explanations of what we are going to read. It then goes to the beginning of everything to describe the proposal Sultan has. This chapter was important because it gave everyone their character and roles. It also led to the next box, the bookstores. This is the basis of the book and the main characters greatest passion. it relate back to the first box because she describes how this got her connected in the first place.

Discussion Leader-Steph-4/21/10

1. How does the reader's feelings toward Sultan Khan change throughout this section?

I felt as a reader anger towards Sultan Khan in the first chapter because of his treatment towards women. He acts as though they are just a commodity. However, in the second chapter as the author describes his passion for books and the suffering he endured to keep alive his country's history and culture I gained more respect for him.

2. If the first chapter, 'The Proposal,' had been written from Sultan Khan's perspective, rather than an omniscient author, how would it have differed?

I think that the story would have had little to no emphasis on his wife's opinion on the matter. The passage would have portrayed his decision as necessary and practical. There may have been a bit of hostility towards the women in his family for expressing their displeasure with his decision.

3. What evidence from the first two chapters confirms the author's caution in the foreword that the family described in the book isn't "typical" of Afghanistan?

The first chapter establishes, among other things, the family's wealth-something not common in Afghanistan. Also the family is not only literate, but also has access to a plethora of different books.

Vocabulary Builder-Lesley-4/21/10

1. Bazaar-pg. xii

• A marketplace or shopping quarter in the Middle East.

2. Hammam-pg. xii

• A communal bathhouse in Islamic countries, usually with separate baths for men and women.

3. Burka-pg. xiv

• A loose garment covering the entire body and having a veiled opening for the eyes, worn by Muslim women.

4. Chockablock-pg. xiv

• Extremely full; crowded; jammed

5. Vacillated-pg. xvi

• To waver in mind or opinion; be indecisive or irresolute.

6. Superannuated-pg. 8

• Retired because of age or infirmity; too old for use.

7. Kalashikov-pg. 10

• Any series of assault rifles of Soviet design, especially the AK-47.

8. Mullahs-pg. 12

• A title of respect in Islamic countries for someone who is learned in teaches of expounds the sacred laws.

9. Mujahedeen-pg. 15

• Muslim guerilla warriors engaged in a jihad.

10. Pyre-pg. 16

• A pile or heap of wood or other combustible material.

11. Plinth-pg. 20

• A slablike member beneath the base of a column or pier.

Introduction

Going into the book, none of us have had any direct experience with the culture being discussed. Our knowledge of Afghanistan's culture, geography and politics is limited to what we've learned in previous history/geography classes. We also have some knowledge of Afghanistan from news coverage of the war going on there.

Based on the brief reading we’ve done of the book up to this point, it seems that the book focuses a lot on the treatment and status of women in Afghani culture. As women ourselves, we may be slightly biased against the culture because of what seems to us to be poor treatment of women. As college students, we are independent and career-minded, making it difficult for us to accept the almost second class status of women in the book.

We are interested in reading this book because we want to learn more about the culture. Despite the plethora of news coverage about Afghanistan following the U.S. invasion in 2001, we, like the majority of Americans, are not that familiar with the culture. Hopefully by gaining a fundamental understanding of Afghanistan’s culture and recent history, we will better understand the barriers obstructing peace in the country.