Jennifer Ortiz Ortiz itibaren Bashkatovo, Orlovskaya oblast', Rusya, 303021
i kept waiting for this book to get better, but it didn't happen. i wouldn't have finished it except for the fact that I was in Africa for 6 weeks with a limited supply of books.
my favourite book of all time! i´ve read it a million times and it will be a lifelong friend!
Ok, wow. This is what I would call an ecxellent book but not a particularly enjoyable one. I learned a lot of things I did not know about the culture in Afghanistan. I also felt rather disturbed while reading the book. It quite often left me with a sour taste in my mouth. I would read for a while and then would have to stop for a day or two. There were times I simply couldn't bear to read anymore and needed to digest what I had read and come to grips with what was happening. I am extremely glad I read it. Extremely, but it is not particularly enjoyable. The ending is only slightly uplifting, if at all. An excellent book, but not exactly light reading.
The main character is named Norman Normann, his mother is named Norma Normann, and his father is named Orman Norman. And it only gets better from there.
A bit racy.
I love this book and have read it a few times since it first came out in 2003. It's one I save for times when I need a lot of cheering up and it never fails to do the trick. I'm a couple of years older than Andrew Collins, but all the references to life in the 1970s really take me back to my own childhood - pop-a-point pencils anyone? What strikes me most when reading it now is the freedom we had as kids in the 70s, you could be out all day during the summer holidays, but as long as you were home in time for tea and not too filthy when you got back all was well. I've read both Andrew Collins' follow-ups to this book and quite enjoyed them, but this is the one I keep coming back to.