This chapter-by-chapter summary contains plot spoilers!

Buy on Amazon: A Thousand Splendid Suns

Navigate the Summary Parts: Part 1: Mariam waits for her dad Part 2: Mariam follows her dad Part 3: Mariam gets married Part 4: Mariam gets pregnant Part 5: Young Laila misses Tariq Part 6: Laila goes on a field trip Part 7: Plans to evacuate Kabul Part 8: Laila gets married Part 9: The Taliban shows up Part 10: Conclusion

Summary of A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini:
Pages  278 - 367

Go to the beginning

(Brought to you by kat impatientreader.com) Chapter 42: It is April 2001, and Laila is appalled to hear that the Taliban has dynamited the huge Buddhas in Bamiyan, which were probably the greatest historical artifacts in Afghanistan.  Then she must take nine year-old Aziza to a Taliban-run orphanage where Rasheed insists they must leave her. Aziza is terrified.  Mariam and Laila promise to visit Aziza every day, but they can't walk outside in the streets unless Rasheed accompanies them. 

Rasheed grudging does so at first, giving them only fifteen minutes with Aziza.  Then he starts weaseling out of escort duties out of spite. Laila starts going on her own, risking terrible beatings by the Taliban if she's caught, which happens several times. Rasheed keeps beating both of his wives. Laila keeps visiting Aziza, thankful that the girl seems to be getting a good education at the orphanage.  Then one morning after Rasheed leaves, the boy Zalmai sees a stranger at the door.  To her utter shock, Laila recognizes Tariq.

Chapter 43:  Mariam remembers seeing the doorman friend of Rasheed's when they went to the hotel for her to phone Jalil.  At the time, she'd thought the man seemed familiar.  Now she realizes that he is in fact the same man who came to their house in Chapter 28 and told Laila that he'd witnessed the death of Tariq in the hospital.  Apparently he is a friend of Rasheed who told this terrible lie ten years ago so Laila would lose all hope and marry Rasheed.

Chapter 44:  Tariq visits Laila for several days in a row while Rasheed is at work, and tells her his story. He went to Pakistan with his parents.  His dad died immediately. His mother got pneumonia and barely survived.  He took a job smuggling hashish to get money to support her, but got caught and thrown in prison for seven years. She died.  When he got out, he took a job as a janitor in a small hotel in Murree, Pakistan. That was in 2000, and he stayed there another year before coming back to Kabul to try to find her. Laila tells him her story and takes Tariq to meet their daughter Aziza.  Meanwhile, the little boy Zalmai tattles all this to Rasheed, not really knowing what trouble it will bring.

Chapter 45:  That night, Rasheed sends Zalmai upstairs, and then begins to beat Mariam and Laila with his belt.  They both fight back. He finally gets Laila on the floor and begins to choke the life out of her. Mariam realizes that he's really going to kill Laila. She runs out to the toolshed, grabs a shovel, runs back, and bashes his head in.

Chapter 46:  Laila and Mariam drag Rasheed's corpse out to the toolshed, and then return to clean everything up and put Zalmai to bed. Then Mariam tells Laila what she must do the next morning:  take Zalmai, Tariq, and Aziza and flee the country. Mariam plans to stay and take full blame for the murder.  Laila begs her to come with them, and says she'll testify on Mariam's behalf.  Mariam says the Taliban will never stop searching for Laila and Tariq whom they will see as accessories to the crime.  She says Laila and Tariq deserve a better life than to be fugitives.  In the morning, Mariam packs them a lunch, says goodbye, and sends them off.

Chapter 47:  Mariam gets thrown in prison, has a brief travesty of a trial, and then gets shot and killed. End of Part Three.

Part Four. Chapter 48:  Laila, living with Tariq at the hotel in Murree, misses Mariam. She worries about Tariq who has bad headaches. Aziza becomes very close to Tariq immediately and helps him clean the hotel. Zalmai hates Tariq at first, but gradually starts coming around.  Laila tells Zalmai that his father (Rasheed) has gone away on a trip. 

Chapter 49:  Laila and Tariq are at the hotel and see on the television news the terrorist attacks on the United States on 9/11/2001. Then they hear that the United States has declared war on the Taliban, and they hope that this will be a good thing.  They follow the news with cautious optimism as the United States starts driving the Taliban out of Afghanistan.

Chapter 50:  In July 2002, Laila convinces Tariq that they need to move back to Kabul and start helping to rebuild their country.  But first they go to Herat so that she can visit the hovel where Mariam lived and to say goodbye. While there, she locates the son of the now dead Mullah Faizullah.  He (and his father before him) have a locked box from Jalil and instructions to give it to Mariam.  Laila tells him that Mariam is dead, and he gives the box to her. The box turns out to contain a video tape of the movie Pinocchio, a bag of money, and a letter begging Mariam's forgiveness. 

Chapter 51:  It's April 2003.  Laila, Tariq, Aziza, and Zalmai now have a peaceful little house in Kabul.  Laila is not thrilled that the warlords have been allowed to come back, but the city is much more stable now.  She and Tariq are deeply involved with improving the orphanage where Aziza had to live back in Chapters 42 – 46.  Laila is pregnant again and everyone in the family is suggesting names if it turns out to be a boy. She knows that she will name it Mariam if it's a girl. The End.
Go to the beginning/characters' list
Go to the Chapter-by-Chapter Summary of The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Go to the Index of Summaries
What to Read Next!
Go to the Current Novel on Twenty-Pages-a-Day!

Zen, candles, herbs, bookshelves, bookcases, fine furniture, perfume, jewelry, New Age, mind body connection, cooking, Buddhism, Zen Buddhism, handmade books, cooking, blank books, art, home decorating, carpets, furnishings, pottery, wine, Zen, gourmet foods, spirituality, tabletop fountains, wind chimes, terrariums, houseplants, Tao, handcrafts, handmade furnishings, artisans, shabby chic, meditation, incense, bells, angels, spirits, tribal arts, Tibetan, Zen, Asian art, India, nature, nature crafts, cooking, aromatherapy, music, folk art, dye, weavings, tapestry, Tao, calligraphy, Tibetan Buddhism, cooking, wind chimes, earth mother, earth goddess, gemstones, garden, talisman, labyrinth, maps, treasures, art objects, fine leather, serious readers, tools for serious readers, Buddha, Krishna, weavings, tapestry, calligraphy, Tibetan Buddhism, earth mother, earth goddess, home decorating, americana, carpets, cooking, library, cooking, gourmet food, wine, kitchen supplies, pasta maker, pens, pen set, stationery, book collecting, photography, sauté pans, baking goods, garlic press, cookbooks, cooking gadgets, cooking tools, chef, gourmet chef, pastry chef, coffee, tea, coffee press, teapots, teacups, coffee mugs, pie, baking supplies, grilling, grills, reading glasses, magnifying glasses, potting shed, gardening supplies, bird watching, bird feeders, birding, bird supplies, cooking, gourmet food, wine, kitchen supplies, pasta maker, pens, pen set, stationery, book collecting, photography, sauté pans, baking goods, garlic press, cookbooks, cooking gadgets, cooking tools, chef, gourmet chef, pastry chef, coffee, tea, coffee press, teapots, teacups, coffee mugs, pie, baking supplies, grilling, grills, reading glasses, magnifying glasses, potting shed, gardening supplies, bird watching, bird feeders, birding, bird supplies, cooking, gourmet food, wine, kitchen supplies, pasta maker, pens, pen set, stationery, book collecting, photography, sauté pans, baking goods, garlic press, cookbooks, cooking gadgets, cooking tools, chef, gourmet chef, pastry chef, coffee, tea, coffee press, teapots, teacups, coffee mugs, pie, baking supplies, grilling, grills, reading glasses, magnifying glasses, potting shed, gardening supplies, bird watching, bird feeders, birding, bird supplies, Valkovalin.com