Reviews with content warning for Xenophobia - The Kite Runner

Read this in under 3 days. A very captivating story, although some parts of the story felt a bit overly coincidental or tragic.

Hosseini is an amazing storyteller and although I've never visited the Middle East he managed to paint a lively picture of past and present Afghanistan.

Will definitely read his other books too.

Content Warnings

gabriella_'s review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This book made me incredibly emotional. I wish I read it sooner. Really satisfying read, excellent character development, and the writing was beautiful and haunting. I absolutely could not put this book down when I was reading it.

Content Warnings

lydiature_'s review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

ok so confession: i tried reading this last year but i dnfd right when amir saw what happened to hassan. SA is such a difficult and sensitive subject in general and i (back then) couldn’t grapple with the fact that the main character basically saw someone getting assaulted and wouldn’t say anything. so i dnfd.

cue a couple of days ago. i saw the physical book at the thrift store for 50 cents and i was like 👀 i’m a simple girl. if i see a book (especially a cheap one), i will buy. so i bought it and i decided to try it again like 2 days ago.

this is one of the most heartbreaking books i have read in a long time. it was uncomfortable all the way through. especially since cruelty and all its nuances were explored in various ways. we have the cruelty of assef (the main bully. may god punish his soul) and the taliban, which is more overt and dark. we have the cruelty of cowards, like amir who watches a life altering event occur. in this story, there are victims, abusers, cowards, and everything else in between. sometimes, characters play all roles at the same time. such is life. sometimes, we might wish to be the hero, but like amir, we might realize that there are shades to heroes. it isn’t so black and white like people tell us.

even though i despise amir for what he didn’t do, i felt myself empathizing with him later on. i never excused his act, but i commended him on his actions later on. and that’s what the author i think was trying to convey. being a hero, coward, and abuser aren’t so clear cut.

i was honestly surprised by this story. it kept exceeding my expectations. i felt so many emotions and deep connection with the characters, despite the very difficult subject matter. i’m so happy that i gave this another shot. i’m definitely adding this author to my “automatic buy” list.

Content Warnings

dragonmom's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

My favorite book I’ve ever read. It’s a very hard book to read because it takes such an emotional toll on you, but some of my favorite quotes of all time are from this book. “Children aren’t coloring books. You don’t get to fill them with your favorite colors”. This book is beautifully written and so emotionally impactful. I recommend this book highly, but if you are expecting a happily ever after this is not the book for you.

Content Warnings