How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
Parvana took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Up until then, she had seen Talibs only as men who beat women and arrested her father. Could they have feelings of sorrow, like other human beings? (7.38)
Major stereotypes are at work here. The Talib men think all women are dirt and treat them as such, while the women think all Talib men are women beaters. That's one of the reasons why this whole letter-reading gig is important to Parvana—she learns that not all Taliban soldiers are evil.
Quote #8
All of this was written in a letter that arrived while Parvana was out at work. The women in the groom's family belonged to the same women's group as Mother. The letter had passed from one member of the group to another until it finally reached Mother. Parvana had read the letter, but she still had a lot of questions. (13.5)
The women in Afghanistan and Pakistan find ways to work together and get things done. So while we've been thinking that Mother has done nothing but take care of life inside the apartment for eighteen months, all the while she has been putting out feelers among her women peeps to find a way to freedom for her oldest daughter.
Quote #9
"Now you are both my daughter and my son," Father said when he was well enough to notice her new appearance. He rubbed his hand over her cropped hair and smiled. (15.8)
Let's face it: Father has always treated Parvana more like a boy than a girl—at least by current Afghan standards—so her new look fits her perfectly. Father has never kept her sheltered or treated her as weak, and she is educated and strong, so while he is jokes about her new look, he is serious at the same time. Parvana has always been just as strong as any boy in Afghanistan—now, she just looks the part.