The Kite Runner

Hey readers! I just read the most thrilling book by Khaled Hosseini "THE KITE RUNNER"

Khaled Hosseini is one of my favorite writers. He’s also the author of A Thousand Splendid Suns, which I will be reviewing pretty soon. His eloquence in writing a dramatic prose is just unparalleled. It is rightly said that his novels can move even some of the hardest hearts.

Like his other novels, The Kite Runner is also set in Afghanistan. It is a beautiful story about the strong bond of friendship between two boys, Amir and Hassan. Hassan is a Hazara. The Hazaras are a Persian-speaking ethnic group native to, and primarily residing in, the mountainous region of Hazarajat, in central Afghanistan. They have been subjected to prejudice and slavery for as long as anyone can remember. Amir is a Pashtun and Pashtuns have oppresed the Hazaras and kept them as their servants since eternity. Despite this social distinction, these two young boys managed to develop a bond this is rarely seen in brothers. They were the Sultans of Kabul until something extremely horrid happened that drove them apart.

This is a beautiful story of love, kinship, hate, betrayal, and most importantly, atonement. Hassan is one of the most beautifully written characters I have ever read. He is the most heartwarming person you’ll ever meet. He’s docile, loyal, benevolent and would never think of hurting a soul. Amir, on the other hand, is insecure. He’s reckless but he’s not bad. He has lived most of his life in self-doubt and longs to prove his worthiness to his indifferent father. He doesn’t have any malicious intentions but he does something that he’ll regret forever. Something happened in the winter of 1975 that he can’t forget and a day will come when he will have to move out of his world of denial and atone for his sins.

For the most part of the story, you’ll hate Amir with everything you have but I promise you that it will get better. There’s a lot of pain in the story and it makes you really empathies with all the Afghans who still live in the worst of conditions. I think A Thousand Splendid Suns is a better read is you are reading Hosseini for the first time but The Kite Runner is also a pretty good read.