A Thousand Splendid Suns stayed with me long after I had turned the last page – so much so that I ended up writing part of my A-Level English coursework on the novel, where I enjoyed rediscovering Hosseini’s words and analysing them in more detail. When the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan last year, following a war lasting almost two decades, I will admit that one of my first thoughts was of A Thousand Splendid Suns, and of Mariam and Laila. Perhaps it seems naïve and ignorant to equate real life and fiction so flippantly, and they are of course two very different entities, but I do think there is great value and influence in stories that so candidly depict a country’s history. Yes, the novel’s lessons on Afghanistan and the Taliban are somewhat basic, but they are accessible and compelling lessons nonetheless. And whilst Mariam and Laila are fictional characters, their plight mirrors that of millions of women during this period, and isn’t that the purpose of historical fiction? Within his work, Hosseini humanises and demystifies lives that are often frustratingly portrayed as far removed from our own. News reports will always fail to fully capture the individual suffering within such a huge, complex, and long-lasting conflict but, when done sensitively and effectively, literature is able to achieve just this. Consequently, I truly believe that my understanding of and response to the news last year was more informed as a result of reading A Thousand Splendid Suns years earlier. From A Thousand Splendid Suns I learnt about a history that I had never been formally taught, and one which is now more important and relevant than ever. Hosseini’s novel highlights the struggle of Afghan women to access basic human rights and freedoms, a struggle that they are now facing once again. Discovering the past often leads to a deeper comprehension of the present, and that is what I experienced with this piece of literature. Erin Zammitt, Print Copy Editor
What It’s A Sin Taught Me About the AIDS Crisis It’s A Sin is a visually stunning, heart-wrenching drama from the mind of Russell T. Davies. Released in 2021, it has become Channel 4’s most streamed show in its history. After hearing rave reviews, I decided I had to watch it for myself. Though I knew the basics about the AIDS crisis of the 1980s and early 90s, I was not too well educated on the subject before watching the show. It’s A Sin follows a group of young people as they move to London, become friends and discover their own identities during the early 1980s; it focuses particularly on Ritchie, an aspiring actor from a homophobic family on the Isle of Wight. As the characters explore their sexuality, they enjoy the freedom of reinvention that comes with moving away from home. However, for Ritchie, his friends, and the wider community within which they live, the hedonistic days of their 20s are soon threatened by the emergence of the AIDS crisis. It’s A Sin presents the transition from a joyful innocence and a reluctance to accept the reality of the crisis, to the heart-breaking consequences of the disease. 12