Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Fear of Beauty by Susan Froetschel

A war torn country is a hard place live.  Those who wish to be peaceful and not part of the fighting have to hide in the hills and grow their own crops.  Only isolation makes them safe.  And sometimes not even that is safe...

Seventh Street Books sent me a copy of this book for review (thank you).  It has been published, so check with your local bookstore for a copy.

I try to avoid novels about war because they depress me.  I've lost friends and family over the years because of war.  I decided to give this one a chance because it's the story of a mother trying to find out who murdered her son.  He died in a fall and she doesn't believe he fell accidently.

This story is set in Afghanistan.  When Sofi's young son dies, the villagers want to blame it on the Americans that have created a temporary settlement on the other side of the mountains.  Sofi is not convinced.  She begins her own search for the truth by watching everyone.

Ms. Froetschel describes the tensions that exist in this country between the compounds, the Taliban and the Americans.  She also describes how little influence an Afghan woman is allowed to have in her life.  That alone makes it worth reading this book.

Nobody lives happily ever after in this story but all of them are just happy to be alive.  I was surprised I had not clue to who the real killer of Sofia's son was and it took me by surprise when the author revealed it. 

The subject matter could have been dry and boring, but this author does a nice job of drawing you in, making you care about the characters and her words flow well.  (There was one I wanted to tape his mouth shut.)  She also shows that even in adverse conditions, there is still room for hope.  Never give up...

Happy reading.    

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