Former journalist Busfield first traveled to Afghanistan in 2001 to cover the fall of the Taliban. Her first novel presents the aftermath of that event through the eyes of an 11-year-old boy. Fawad has experienced grief during his short life: his father and brother have been killed, his sister has been abducted, and he and his mother are living as little better than servants in the home of his mother's sister. Things start looking up when Fawad's mother, Mariya, gets a position as housekeeper for a British woman, who lives with two other Westerners. Unfortunately, Fawad's voice doesn't quite ring true, with Fawad sometimes seeming far younger than he is and sometimes seeming to possess an adult comprehension of events well beyond that of the adults themselves. In addition, his resilience and ability to let go of learned prejudices (one of the Westerners is a lesbian, something that initially troubles him but that he quickly accepts) seem unrealistically utopian. Busfield might have been able to tell the story more convincingly had one of the women narrated. VERDICT This novel is certainly no Kite Runner, but readers who like to explore other cultures and current events through fiction will find here an intriguing picture of contemporary Afghanistan. Extras for book clubs are appended.—Debbie Bogenschutz, Cincinnati State Technical & Community Coll.

Adult/High School—Fawad, an 11-year-old Muslim Afghan boy, was born under the shadow of the Taliban, according to his mother, but he remains an optimist despite the lingering tragedy in his life. He and his mother are struggling to survive after his father and brother are killed and his sister is abducted by the Taliban. Their lives change dramatically when Fawad's mother is hired to work in a house with three Westerners in an affluent suburb of Kabul. Streetwise Fawad no longer has to beg and steal with his friends and grows more responsible and mature after accepting an after-school job in a shop with a wisecracking blind man he befriends. Fawad's observations and concerns about his new experiences living with English-speaking, godless foreigners are told with humor and heartbreak. One of his primary concerns is the poignant love story involving his beloved British landlady and wealthy, yet dangerous Afghan Haji Khan. Busfield tells this story through the eyes of a child, reflecting the optimism and humanity of the resilient people she encountered while she lived in Kabul, a refreshing viewpoint not conveyed in other contemporary novels about Afghanistan.—Melanie Parsons, Fairfax County Public Library, VA