At the end of the book, Afra says to Nuri, "You think it's me who can't see." What do you think she means by that? Do you agree?

At the end of the book, Afra says to Nuri, "You think it's me who can't see." What do you think she means by that? Do you agree?

Eyesight is not everything. Sometimes, though we have all our senses, we miss the obvious, concentrate on the wrong things, misconstrue reality - in other words, we don't really see what we think we do at times.

I think Afra knew (and accepted) that she was going through trauma, but I think Nuri was in denial. Afra knew her husband was having difficulty coping with all he'd been through, although I think Nuri himself really didn't for a very long time.

I think she was talking about their son and how she recognized the loss and her grief for what they were. Nuri was lost in his denial, in the fantasy of another boy who needed him. He could not see past his fantasy to mourn. Afra's blindness was a manifestation of her loss and mourning. Only when she began to come to terms with her loss did she begin to see again. But at that point, Nuri was reaching the apex of his denial. He couldn't see what was happening to him yet. His mind would not allow it.

Nuri thought Afra was the one that was suffering the most with the loss of their son, but even though he physically could see, what he didn’t see was how he was suffering from the loss of their son as well, by making up another boy to take his place and having problems mentally dealing with the stress.. Afra was pointing out that Nuri couldn’t see how his pain was manifesting.

My cousin's daughter, blind from birth, and now a proofreader for textbooks, has taught me that our eyes are the least effective way of seeing. She said that losing her hearing would be much worse than losing her sight. Afra amazed me as she drew sightless, using her touch to help her.

Afra's senses were heightened and she could feel how much Nuri was suffering. He was hiding his suffering behind Afra's loss of sight and her heartbreak of losing her son. He wasn't realizing how sad he was.

Nuri always seemed to be running from one place to another with no thought or rationale; like the constant movement would help him survive. He did not stop to see the situation for what it was or how it was affecting his bride or even himself.

Afra is blind - she cannot see people's faces, the color of the sky or the path she walks on. But Afra can see what has happened to her child and what they must face in the future and how the war has affected Nuri. Nuri can see everything around him but he cannot see that Mohammed is not really there or that Afra has accepted their future.