The Kite Runner

Author: Khaled Hosseini
About the author: Born in Afghanistan, received political asylum in the U.S.A. in 1980, doctor by profession. This is his first book.

It’s not very often that you come across a book like this. A book that can keep you riveted throughout. A book that touches your heart deeply; that stays, long after you have finished it. Khaled Hosseini’s “The Kite Runner” is at times like a song: gentle and nostalgic, bringing back memories of childhood, sometimes insouciant and sometimes cruel. At times it is like a vividly coloured photograph: the streets of Kabul come alive before your eyes, kites fight each other for dominance and kebab shops line the bustling streets. At times it is heartbreakingly close to reality: the war-ravaged, Taliban-infested Afghanistan; a man selling his artificial leg; an execution held on a football field during the half-time.

This story of damnation and redemption is told through the eyes of Amir. Amir longs for the love and affection of his somewhat indifferent father, who he admires and fears the most. He believes that the indifference stems from the fact that Amir’s mother died giving birth to him. Furthermore, he thinks himself to be a failure in his father’s eyes, a wimp and a coward.

However, his father seems to have a special affection for Hussain, their servant’s son. Hussain is strong and courageous, protecting Amir and loving him with unflinching loyalty.

But one day, to gain his father’s love and admiration, Amir selfishly and cowardly betrays Hussain, thus condemning himself to a life full of lies and regrets. It is only after several years that Amir gets the opportunity to redeem himself. And so he sets off on a dangerous journey to Afghanistan, a journey that will liberate him from his demons and make a man out of him.

Though the novel is engaging throughout, I was particularly moved by the part about their childhood. Hosseini describes the unusual relationship between Amir and Hussain with brutal honesty. Amir loves Hussain as a friend (even as a brother) but cannot ignore the fact that Hussain is a servant, a Hazara, a Shia while he, is the master, a Pashtun and a Sunni. Children can be cruel and so Amir continually tests Hussain’s loyalty (“Would you eat dirt if I asked you to?”), makes fun of his illiteracy and makes him party to his pranks. Hussain, pure of heart and blessed with an ability to understand people, never protests. His self-sacrificing and unconditional love is heartrending. For you, a thousand times, he says to Amir. A phrase that torments Amir for life and echoes throughout the book. A phrase that brings the story of Amir and Hussain a full circle.

This is Khaled Hosseini’s first book. A brilliant raconteur, he is someone to reckon with. His second book, A Thousand Splendid Suns is already a best-seller. His style of writing is very visual (as I said earlier, like a photograph) and so I think it could make a great film.

This book is special for another reason too. It talks of a country which is in news all the time but of which we know little. It talks of Afghanistan, its long-suffering but proud people and its once beautiful cities razed to the ground.

Khaled Hosseini’s “The Kite Runner” is a must read. Finally, here is one book that really deserves its ‘best-seller’ status.