The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul by Deborah Rodriguez

From Goodreads: 

The internationally bestselling novel about a little café in Kabul, and the five extraordinary women who meet there - as if Maeve Binchy had written The Kite Runner. If you've read and loved this novel, look out for its brilliant sequel, Return to the Little Coffee Shop of Kabul!

and 

The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul is the heart-warming and life-affirming fiction debut from the author of the bestselling memoir The Kabul Beauty School.

The good: It is heart-warming, and a bit in the style of Maeve Binchy. There is nothing offensive, and clearly the author’s own experiences have been drawn on to make this as delicious and enchanting as the “coffee” served in the porcelain cups, so as not to draw attention to the fact that there was in fact, wine being served.

The bad: It felt like a non-authentic Afghanistan story. Can an ex-pat’s story about their country of residence ever be authentic? It wasn't as raw, or painful as I imagined it would be. Too Maeve Binchy. But then it was authentic from the ex-pat’s point of view…hmmm.

The ugly: There is nothing ugly about this book, and maybe that's the problem. Look at the cover. So pretty. And the story is a beautiful one of five women whose lives intersect for a short time, and have a profound impact on one another. 

Read this if you are interested in finding out a little bit more about Afghanistan and life there. 

3 stars

ISBN: 9780751550405

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