Afghanistan, 1952. Abdullah and his sister Pari live with their father and stepmother in their village, struggling together through poverty and brutal winters. One day they traverse the desert to Kabul and find that what awaits them there will cause events which tear their lives apart. Hosseini writes about the bonds that define us and shape our lives, the ways in which we help our loved ones in need, and how we are often surprised by the people closest to us.