For almost three decades now, the Afghan refugee crisis has been one of the most severe around the
globe. War, hunger, anarchy, and oppression forced millions of people-like Tariq and his family in
this tale-to abandon their homes and flee Afghanistan to settle in neighboring Pakistan and Iran. At the
height of the exodus, as many as eight million Afghans were living abroad as refugees. Today, more
than two million Afghan refugees remain in Pakistan.
Over the past year, I have had the privilege of working as a U.S. envoy for UNHCR, the UN refugee
agency, one of the world's foremost humanitarian agencies. UNHCR's mandate is to protect the basic
human rights of refugees, provide emergency relief, and to help refugees restart their lives in a safe
environment. UNHCR provides assistance to more than twenty million displaced people around the
world, not only in Afghanistan but also in places such as Colombia, Burundi, the Congo, Chad, and
the Datfur region of Sudan. Working with UNHCR to help refugees has been one of the most
rewarding and meaningful experiences of my life.
To help, or simply to learn more about UNHCR, its work, or the plight of refugees in general, please
visit:www.UNrefugees.org .
Thank you.
Khaled Hosseini January 31, 2007
Acknowledgments
A few clarifications before I give thanks. The village of Gul Daman is a fictional place-as far as I
know. Those who are familiar with the city of Herat will notice that I have taken minor liberties
describing the geography around it. Last, the title of this novel comes from a poem composed by
Saeb-e-Tabrizi, a seventeenth-century Persian poet. Those who know the original Farsi poem will
doubtless note that the English translation of the line containing the title of this novel is not a literal
one. But it is the generally accepted translation, by Dr. Josephine Davis, and I found it lovely. I am
grateful to her.
I would like to thank Qayoum Sarwar, Hekmat Sadat, Elyse Hathaway, Rosemary Stasek, Lawrence
Quill, and Haleema Jazmin Quill for their assistance and support.
Very special thanks to my father, Baba, for reading this manuscript, for his feedback, and, as ever,
for his love and support. And to my mother, whose selfless, gentle spirit permeates this tale. You are
my reason, Mother jo. My thanks go to my in-laws for their generosity and many kindnesses. To the
rest of my wonderful family, I remain indebted and grateful to each and every one of you.I wish to thank my agent, Elaine Koster, for always, always believing, Jody Hotchkiss (Onward!),
David Grossman, Helen Heller, and the tireless Chandler Crawford. I am grateful and indebted to
every single person at Riverhead Books. In particular, I want to thank Susan Petersen Kennedy and
Geoffrey Kloske for their faith in this story. My heartfelt thanks also go to Marilyn Ducksworth, Mih-
Ho Cha, Catharine Lynch, Craig D. Burke, Leslie Schwartz, Honi Werner, and Wendy Pearl. Special
thanks to my sharp-eyed copy editor, Tony Davis, who misses
nothing, and, lastly, to my talented editor, Sarah McGrath, for her patience, foresight, and guidance.
Finally, thank you, Roya. For reading this story, again and again, for weathering my minor crises of
confidence (and a couple of major ones), for never doubting. This book would not be without you. I
love you.