The women
This woman is the first protagonist we meet, born in a kolba.
Who is Mariam?
The shoemaker who marries Mariam and later Laila.
Who is Rasheed?
The country where the entire novel takes place.
What is Afghanistan?
The "illegitimate" status Nana gives Mariam.
What is Harami?
Laila’s daughter, who is sent to an orphanage to survive.
Who is Aziza?
Laila’s childhood sweetheart who "returns from the dead."
Who is Tariq?
This radical group takes over Kabul in 1996, drastically stripping away the rights of women.
Who is the Taliban?
This limb was lost by Tariq due to a landmine.
What is his left leg?
Mariam’s mother, who warns her that a man’s finger always finds a woman to blame.
Nana
Mariam’s father, who owns a cinema in Herat.
Who is Jalil?
The city where the "splendid suns" are said to hide behind walls.
What is Kabul?
The tool Mariam uses to end Rasheed’s life.
What is a shovel?
She is Laila’s "modern" mother who suffers from deep depression.
who is Fariba/Mammy?
Laila’s father, a teacher who values his daughter's education.
Hakim
The city in Pakistan where Laila and Tariq find peace.
What is Murree?
The movie Mariam wanted to see for her 15th birthday.
What is Pinocchio?