For more than twenty years Sultan Khan defied the authorities to supply books to the people of Kabul. He was arrested, interrogated and imprisoned,and watched illiterate soldiers burn piles of his books in streets.

In spring 2002 award-winning journalist Asne seierstad spent four months living with the bookseller and his family. As Seierstad steps back from the page and lets the Khans tell their stories, we learn of proposals and marriages, hope and fear, crime and punishment. The result is an unique portrait of a family and a country.