The Patience Stone - Hardcover

Rahimi, Atiq

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0701184167 ISBN 13: 9780701184162

Publisher: Chatto & Windus, 2010

Synopsis

Winner of France's prestigious Goncourt Prize for 2008, and set in modern-day Aghanistan, this explosive and moving short novel, with a shocking twist, takes a compelling literary look behind the veil, daring to confront taboos of female oppression and sexuality.

A young woman sits at her husband's bedside, twisting her worry beads, reciting prayers. Shot in the neck by a fellow soldier, he is in a coma. The passage of time is measured by the sound of his breathing, the slow drip that keeps him alive and the calls to prayer in the streets outside.

Consumed by her vigil and his medical care, the woman is alone and desperate for any sign of life from her comatose husband. As her mind appears to unravel, so it becomes intensely clear-sighted. Now is her chance -- her first ever -- to speak without being censored. Empowered by her husband's silence, she steps out of the shadows and begins her confessional....

Soldiers raid the flat. In the room she acts out her fantasies and her revenge. But always she comes back to the bedside, to pour out her love and her hate and her sexual desires, as though to a sang-e-sabur -- the black patience stone of Persian mythology. Finally, spurred to new heights of daring, she spills out her most explosive secret.

About this title

Review

An astonishing writer: this book is another brilliant triumph.' Nadeem Aslam (Nadeem Aslam)

The Patience Stone ... is a deceptively simple book, written in a spare, poetic style. But it is a rich read, part allegory, part a tale of retribution, part an exploration of honor, love, sex, marriage, war.It is without doubt an important and courageous book.In this reader's view, though, this novel's greatest achievement is in giving voice.Giving voice to those who, as the fable goes, suffer the most and cry out the least. (Khaled Hosseini, author of The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns)

One thinks of Marguerite Duras, the plays of Sartre, the absurdity of Samuel Beckett, even of Ernest Hemingway. Strangely beautiful, poignant, by turns light and serious... The Patience Stone is one of those rare novels which make time elastic; too short, it can be read in one go, yet it never leaves you. (Lire)

Book Description

Winner of France's prestigious Goncourt Prize for 2008, set in modern-day Aghanistan, this explosive, controversial and moving short novel takes a compelling literary look behind the veil, daring to confront taboos of female oppression and sexuality.

Edition details

• Publisher: Chatto & Windus
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0701184167
• ISBN 13: 9780701184162
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 160