Nadia Hashimi

An Afghan American woman returns to Kabul to learn the truth about her family and the tragedy that destroyed their lives in this brilliant and compelling novel from the bestselling author of The Pearl That Broke Its Shell, The House Without Windows, and When the Moon Is Low.

Kabul, 1978: The daughter of a prominent family, Sitara Zamani lives a privileged life in Afghanistan's thriving cosmopolitan capital. The 1970s are a time of remarkable promise under the leadership of people like Sardar Daoud, Afghanistan's progressive president, and Sitara's beloved father, his right-hand man. But the ten-year-old Sitara's world is shattered when communists stage a coup, assassinating the president and Sitara's entire family. Only she survives.

Smuggled out of the palace by a guard named Shair, Sitara finds her way to the home of a female American diplomat, who adopts her and raises her in America. In her new country, Sitara takes on a new name—Aryana Shepherd—and throws herself into her studies, eventually becoming a renowned surgeon. A survivor, Aryana has refused to look back, choosing instead to bury the trauma and devastating loss she endured.

New York, 2008: Forty years after that fatal night in Kabul, Aryana's world is rocked again when an elderly patient appears in her examination room—a man she never expected to see again. It is Shair, the soldier who saved her, yet may have murdered her entire family. Seeing him awakens Aryana's fury and desire for answers—and, perhaps, revenge. Realizing that she cannot go on without finding the truth, Aryana embarks on a quest that takes her back to Kabul—a battleground between the corrupt government and the fundamentalist Taliban—and through shadowy memories of the world she loved and lost.

Bold, illuminating, heartbreaking, yet hopeful, Sparks Like Stars is a story of home—of America and Afghanistan, tragedy and survival, reinvention and remembrance, told in Nadia Hashimi's singular voice.

Sparks Like Stars

A young girl's family is killed in a coup in Afghanistan in 1978; she is the only remaining member. After being rescued and moved to the United States, Sitara lives under another name, trying to forget her past. Ahd, she's successful until she meets someone from her past.

This book is rich in character work and detail. I knew very little about the Saur Revolution/April Coup of 1978 or the subsequent Soviet invasion. I was drawn into the story and cared so much about the characters.

Cheri McElroy

A young girl's family is killed in a coup in Afghanistan in 1978; she is the only remaining member. After being rescued and moved to the United States, Sitara lives under another name, trying to forget her past. Ahd, she's successful until she meets someone from her past.

This book is rich in character work and detail. I knew very little about the Saur Revolution/April Coup of 1978 or the subsequent Soviet invasion. I was drawn into the story and cared so much about the characters.

Sonia Grgas

This book was a mixed bag for me. I wasn’t even sure I liked it till well under way but nearer to the end I could not put it down. The rating is really 4.5 rounded up. I took half a star away as I never completely warmed up to the main character which is essential for me to completely love a book.

altlovesbooks

A late entry on my 2021 favorites shelf. This was unexpectedly brilliant and heartbreaking and beautiful, and something I think others should read. Definitely a book club book, if you do that sort of thing.

Sitara grew up in Kabul in the late 70s, the daughter of a highly-ranked man in the president's inner circle. She was witness to the Afghan coup in 1978, flees the country and leaves the memories of her friends, family, and life behind her. Now, thirty years later, after Sitara has established herself in America under the identity of her dead sister (Aryana), she realizes she needs to bury her past so she can move forward as a successful oncology surgeon. We stay with Sitara/Aryana as she struggles to reconcile the lie she lives in America with wanting to give her family the burial they deserve. Making peace with your past is complicated, as it turns out.

I don't have much criticism of this book, except maybe that we spend a bit too long in America while Sitara spins her mental wheels. I enjoyed all parts of this book, but I can't help but feel the America segment could have been shorter and not sacrificed any emotional impact. The author's writing style was spectacular, though, and as a first introduction to Nadia Hashimi, this was a great first impression. I'm absolutely going to read more from her going forward.

Jennifer

A heartbreaking novel with stellar storytelling, Nadia Hashimi's Sparks Like Stars spans across two generations to tell a story about grief and unsung narratives that lays beneath the ones in the current timeline.


  

  "Until now, my history has remained buried in me the way ancient civilisations are hidden beneath layers of earth and new life."
  



Can I just say that I was absolutely blown away by the storytelling in the beginning of Sparks Liek Stars? Thanks to Hashimi's poetic prose that combines constellations and ancient civilisations together in one - I really enjoyed reading Sitara's narrative. It's so beautifully written that I just had a difficult time putting the book down.

I think this specific quote about ancient civilisation summed up the novel so well. As the premise stated, Sitara is the sole survivor of her family after a violent political coup. She took on a new identity (Aryana) as she escaped her home country to America and was adopted by an American diplomat. So beneath the new stories told in Aryana's lens lays the buried stories in Sitara's narratives, and Hashimi approached the deeper layers like excavating artifacts buried deep down from the ancient civilisations. I just found this ancient civilisation metaphor so well done!


  

  "With a kind of magic I didn't fully appreciate as a child, my parents spun grief into gratitude."
  



A big portion of Sparks Like Stars deals with grief / loss in which parallels tightly with Aryana's buried narratives before she changed her identity. As Aryana looked retrospectively back to her childhood she comes in terms of how to deal with loss of loved ones. For example, from her parents she grew to appreciate that it's possible to reframe grief into gratitude to move forward in life. Through dealing with grief, Hashimi did a great job unearthing Sitara's narratives which were buried deep beneath time and the new name. It's this sort of emotional exploration that made Sitara's narrative so engaging and yet so heartbreaking to read about.


  

  "I prayed for a moonless night, for a chance to be visited in the dark sky by the distant twinkle of gathered stars."
  



I would easily say that the first half (and the storytelling from Sitara's narratives) is decidedly stronger. With twinkling prose which combines constellations and stars into personal narratives, the poetic writing felt elusive to me. As someone who enjoys well written proses, the first and the stronger is a page-turner.

On the flipside, I couldn't say the same for the second half of Sparks Like Stars, that took place in America in the 2000s. While I found Aryana's encountering with Shair rather surprising and central to the novel, there are still a lot of unanswered qestions left from 30+ years gap between the two sections of the book. Similarly I found the pacing here a bit rushed so I found the buildup towards the final revelation not as emotionally satisfying as I've expected.

Despite my concerns with the latter half's slightly rushed quality, Sparks Like Stars is nevertheless a pretty powerful tale about personal narratives - on how to deal with grief / loss as well as the stories about our past that we bury behind us. If you enjoy emotionally engaging storytelling and poetic proses, this book is definitely worth checking out!

N.B. This book contains following content warnings: grief/loss, illnesses, medical stuff / hospitals, death, blood mention, physical violence, and injuries

(3.5 stars out of 5)

Kayla 

Fun Fact: my most read place (outside of Europe) is Afghanistan. In part because of the talented @nadiahashimibooks . She is one of my favourite writers and so when @harpercollinsca sent me an ARC of her newest book I cried happy tears lol.

Sitara is the daughter of the president’s most trusted advisor. A coup in 1978 changes her world forever and she has to flee and start a new life in America.

This books brings you on a journey through the years of Sitara growing up and dealing with her trauma. I don’t want to share anything else because it is just so good and I want you to enjoy uncovering the story page by page.

I read this book in 4 days! It was so hard to put down. I was captivated from the very start. Sitara is a fantastic character! Her journey was full of so much emotion and adventure. It felt like I was reading a true story. All of the characters in here are vibrant and spectacularly written.

If you’re looking for a captivating historical fiction that will have you wrapped up in a mystery then this is your book. You feel as though you are right there with brave Sitara and are just as desperate as she is to put the pieces together.

Thank you so much @harpercollinsca for sending me this book! #gifted

It’s a 5⭐️ read for sure! Releases Tomorrow!

Mina

Amelia C 

Tara Harder

Saloni Patel

An Afghan American woman returns to Kabul to learn the truth about her family and the tragedy that destroyed their lives in this brilliant and compelling novel from the bestselling author of The Pearl That Broke Its Shell, The House Without Windows, and When the Moon Is Low.

Kabul, 1978: The daughter of a prominent family, Sitara Zamani lives a privileged life in Afghanistan’s thriving cosmopolitan capital. The 1970s are a time of remarkable promise under the leadership of people like Sardar Daoud, Afghanistan’s progressive president, and Sitara’s beloved father, his right-hand man. But the ten-year-old Sitara’s world is shattered when communists stage a coup, assassinating the president and Sitara’s entire family. Only she survives.

Smuggled out of the palace by a guard named Shair, Sitara finds her way to the home of a female American diplomat, who adopts her and raises her in America. In her new country, Sitara takes on a new name—Aryana Shepherd—and throws herself into her studies, eventually becoming a renowned surgeon. A survivor, Aryana has refused to look back, choosing instead to bury the trauma and devastating loss she endured.

New York, 2008: Forty years after that fatal night in Kabul, Aryana’s world is rocked again when an elderly patient appears in her examination room—a man she never expected to see again. It is Shair, the soldier who saved her, yet may have murdered her entire family. Seeing him awakens Aryana’s fury and desire for answers—and, perhaps, revenge. Realizing that she cannot go on without finding the truth, Aryana embarks on a quest that takes her back to Kabul—a battleground between the corrupt government and the fundamentalist Taliban—and through shadowy memories of the world she loved and lost.

Bold, illuminating, heartbreaking, yet hopeful, Sparks Like Stars is a story of home—of America and Afghanistan, tragedy and survival, reinvention and remembrance, told in Nadia Hashimi’s singular voice.

Sparks Like Stars

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