The Bookseller of Kabul

 The Bookseller of Kabul is an autobiographical novel who's story follows that of a relatively affluent Afghan entrepenuer Bookseller, Sultan, and his family, as experienced and told through Anse Seierstad's documentary stay with them closely followed and following the 9/11 attacks and the subsequent  American invasion of Afghanistan.
One thing that this book focused heavily on was the treatment of women and their place in conservative Islamic society. Right from the beginning it deals with this; With Sultan looking for another young wife in addition to his older one, presumably for reasons of the sensual type. I knew that   conservative Islam's treatment of woman was largely materialistic prior to reading this, but I didn't truly realize just how inanimate they are in the eyes of Muslim men until after. Marriages almost never have anything to do with intimate connections and have everything to do with procreation and housework. They're literally used as bargaining chips and currency.
Beyond this, his life  and the history of his work and book collection is told. From the ultra Islamic Muhajideen, to the Soviet occupation, the Taliban regime, and the American invasion. At one point he says something about how his book collection has been both allowed and sought after and also persecuted and burned during different regimes.
So far I have really enjoyed this book.