The novel Wanting Mor, by Rukhsana Khan is a gripping tale of life lessons. The story unfolds through the eyes of a traumatized Afghan woman named Jameela. Jameela begins to discover and understand the themes and morals of life after witnessing the death of her beloved mother, Mor. As the novel progresses, many themes arise throughout the novel. This powerful novel depicts themes of trust, tranquility, and righteousness in the cruel and cold world Jameela inhabits. The concept of defending oneself plays a key theme in the novel Wanting Mor. The novel unfolds with an illustration of Jameela, as a shy and obedient girl, influenced by her religious beliefs. As it says in the novel: “Don’t tell me what I am!” I’ll tell you!’… My face is burning. How could I have been so careless? So disrespectful. Maybe I’m tired too” (Rukhsana 29). These statements come in the wake of Mor's death and how Jameela's father, Baba, reacts to the situation by humiliating everyone, including his own daughter. Jameela tries to calm her father down in an attempt to relax him by informing him that he is just tired. Despite this, her father thinks this is offensive as he needs to be soothed by his young daughter, making Jameela believe the cause was his. She is also depicted as distrustful because she respects anyone, regardless of their own feelings and emotions. This is illustrated in chapters three through nine, which begin with Baba telling Jameela that they are leaving their village to go to the picturesque city known as Kabul, regardless of Jameela's consideration in the process. Next, Jameela works with the multiple Khalaas, a respectable term for o...... middle of paper ... the arduous work she undertakes, step by step to find her voice to say no. Likewise, the tranquility gets worse as work and his anger intensifies, but it subsides slowly and carefully. Among the three, righteousness has a greater impact in representing a life lesson through work, as it continually strives to gain satisfaction from others. This stands out from the others, as it is a more prevalent theme, as well as a more prominent moral within Wanting Mor, with the statement: "If you can't be beautiful, you should at least be Good. People will like that,” still prevailing. As these themes can be different from each other, they all demonstrate how being assertive, calm, and courteous can go a long way in the book as well as in life. Work Cited Khan, Rukhsana. Want Mor. Toronto, ON: Groundwood Books, 2009. 190. Print.