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A review by john_pascoe
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
5.0
“For you, a thousand times over.”
Hosseini is not afraid to upset his readers for a better novel. Hosseini’s magnum opus, The Kite Runner is a spellbinding debut novel centred on a young boy, Amir in Afghanistan in the 1960s. Amir is fortunate with a respected father and the luxuries of the upper class. Amir’s father, Baba, has very strong morals and rules he applies to real-life scenarios. Being upper class, Baba has a Hazara servant and Amir is best friends with the Servant’s son but suspects the friendship might be bribed.
In 1975, Amir is 12 years of age and he is desperate to win the local kite-fighting tournament and Hassan loyally wants to help. Neither one of them can predict what will happen to Hassan that afternoon, a life-scarring event.
After the Russians invade and the family flees to America, Amir realises he must return to where he grew up, despite its new control, to find the one thing his life in America can not grant him: redemption.
This novel deals with many themes:
- racism
- Amir’s redemption by Baba
- friendship
- betrayal
- morals: right vs wrong
- hostility
- Russia’s impact on Afghanistan
- poverty/class
- like father, like son
Arguably, the most relevant theme is like father, like son. For instance, “… Baba and I were more alike than I’d ever known. We had both betrayed the people who would have given their lives for us.”
The Kite Runner is written very well with authentic terms of endearment such as “jan” and “agha” and cultural details but leaves the book readable for English speakers. the characters’ idiosyncrasies and authenticity build a connection between the reader and the characters so that when misfortune strikes them, the reader empathises. Additionally, the book uses a lot of monosyllables, analogous to Hemingway’s famous writing style.
Hosseini is not afraid to upset his readers for a better novel. Hosseini’s magnum opus, The Kite Runner is a spellbinding debut novel centred on a young boy, Amir in Afghanistan in the 1960s. Amir is fortunate with a respected father and the luxuries of the upper class. Amir’s father, Baba, has very strong morals and rules he applies to real-life scenarios. Being upper class, Baba has a Hazara servant and Amir is best friends with the Servant’s son but suspects the friendship might be bribed.
In 1975, Amir is 12 years of age and he is desperate to win the local kite-fighting tournament and Hassan loyally wants to help. Neither one of them can predict what will happen to Hassan that afternoon, a life-scarring event.
After the Russians invade and the family flees to America, Amir realises he must return to where he grew up, despite its new control, to find the one thing his life in America can not grant him: redemption.
This novel deals with many themes:
- racism
- Amir’s redemption by Baba
- friendship
- betrayal
- morals: right vs wrong
- hostility
- Russia’s impact on Afghanistan
- poverty/class
- like father, like son
Arguably, the most relevant theme is like father, like son. For instance, “… Baba and I were more alike than I’d ever known. We had both betrayed the people who would have given their lives for us.”
The Kite Runner is written very well with authentic terms of endearment such as “jan” and “agha” and cultural details but leaves the book readable for English speakers. the characters’ idiosyncrasies and authenticity build a connection between the reader and the characters so that when misfortune strikes them, the reader empathises. Additionally, the book uses a lot of monosyllables, analogous to Hemingway’s famous writing style.