What readers think of When the Moon Is Low, plus links to write your own review.

This book chronicling a family's flight from Afghanistan to London is fraught with many perils, but is different from the stories headlining our daily newspapers. The journey is led by Fereiba, mother of 3 children, one of whom was recently born and very ill, after her husband Mahmood was taken away by the Taliban, a woman strong beyond belief. We read and see photos of male migrants crossing the seas by boat, going from country to country and riding the Chunnel from Calais, but no story like Fereiba's can hold you captive like When the Moon is Low. The story builds in intensity as Fereiba and family face one obstacle after another, and it's hard to put the book down. It's even harder to think that this is happening over and over each day as the Taliban and Isis crack down on life in the Mideast. Women are allowed no freedom, yet Fereiba took it upon herself to make sure her family could enjoy a safe life in the future. A love story-- and as the author wrote "love grows wildest in gardens of hardship". Everyone should be reading this book.

I haven't enjoyed a book this much in a long time. It is an interesting look at Kabul, Afghanistan and the people who lived there when the Taliban took over. It is the story of a woman and her family of three children, one a baby. Her husband was killed, she was left destitute. It is their journey of trying to find a better life. They go though many trials while making their way from Kabul to London. Very interesting look at people in other countries

When the Moon is Low is one of those books where you lose track of time and become totally engrossed a family's journey from the the terrors of the Taliban in Afghanistan to eventual reunion with family in England. But the journey is difficult as they are either cared for or persecuted by those they meet along the way. The read is a roller coaster of emotions as Nadia Hashimi teases us with their safety and then their near tragedies through out the escape from their homeland. Fabulous story!

Nadia Hashimi has successfully transformed the reader into an undocumented refugee. The reader is a family member traveling through alien countries with different cultures meeting good and evil people along the way. One constantly finds oneself debating what is the best course of action in each situation. The characters are well developed and you feel personally involved with their decisions. The descriptions of the countries and the cultures are vivid and you easily relate to them.It is a hard book to put down and moves fluidly.

As soon as I received this book I started reading and couldn't put it down. The characters felt so alive to me that at times it was hard to go on because what they were going through was so immediate and real. Depressing, yet hopeful in the face of great odds is how I would describe this wonderful book. Highly recommended.

The main focus of this novel is the flight of Fereiba and her three children from Afghanistan to England. However, along the way, her teenage son, Saleem, becomes separated from the rest of the family. So begins his coming of age story. The plight of refugees of all ages and nationalities is laid bare, and we see both the humanity and inhumanity of man. My biggest criticism was the ending, which left me worrying about the fates of the family and some of those we met along the way. A good read and timely discussion topic for book clubs.

This story about a family of refugees portrays the experience of a mother and her three children. There is nothing about the historical background of this story that is unfamiliar as the news has been full of repressive regimes in the Middle East and the status of refugees who have been forced to leave their homes. The arrest and execution of the man of this family demonstrates that physical danger can be the proximate cause of migration, not just economic security. This book is easy to read as the narrative is engaging. It is also hard to read as their plight is so desperate. Not only do these, and other, refugees lose their habitation, their possessions, their food security, but they lose their community of relatives and neighbors. What struck me the most was their isolation and lack of support from any government or from other people, leading to despair and hopelessness. The one time this family found support and comfort from an older couple was in stark contrast to their usual experiences. This timely book puts a human face on the refugee crisis that is overwhelming Europe at the present time.

I am a senior with time to stay informed regarding current events, thus the main elements of the story were not surprising to me. I would recommend this book for younger readers than myself as this brings attention to the human face of a pervasive news story. A young adult book group might find this an interesting discussion book.

After reading Nadia Hashimi's first book, The Pearl That Broke Its Shell, I knew I was hooked on this author. Now she has brought us another story from Afghanistan that may be even more emotionally wrenching than her first. This story of an Afghani family suffering through the Taliban takeover provides historical detail through a very personal involvement with two main characters. Fereiba, who tells of her difficult childhood and being forced to make tough decisions as a mother; and her son, Saleem who struggles to become a strong male support for his family even while still an adolescent. Though the specific refugee story is Afghan I feel that the larger theme is the story of all refugee experience. In reading this book I came to realize a better sense of the plight of all refugees coming into a new country and struggling for acceptance. Often their stories are not heard and even as Saleem found when meeting other refugees in his travels, the stories he thought were the same as his proved not to be. He found that the loving support from his family was key to making him one of the luckier ones and helped him to survive against all odds. Hashimi's ability to entrench the reader into her characters' lives is the quality of the story. Those who like Khaled Hosseini's books will find Hashimi's story an excellent addition to the stories of Afghanistan.