Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner is a standalone novel. Spanning several decades, story begins with the birth of two boys, Amir, a Pashtun of the respected noble class and Hassan, a Hazara of the subservient class. Although the two grew up as brothers, there was a constant division in their relationship created by their differing social status. Eventually, the social, political, and ethnic tension surrounding their friendship rips the two apart, leaving Amir forever trapped in his own guilt. Spanning the course of 39 years, The Kite Runner tells the story of a guilt-ridden young man on the quest for redemption.
Amir straddles a very fine line between a likeable character and a detestable one. He grew up desperately seeking his father’s approval, but rarely getting it as his father saw him as cowardly and weak. Instead, his father quietly approved of Hassan’s bravery and athleticism. Although Hassan did nothing but fawn over and assist his close friends, Amir quickly became jealous of him. He constantly felt the need to assert his superiority over Hassan and used his literacy and education to taunt and tease his friend. Eventually, Amir’s jealousy for Hassan boiled over creating a permanent divide in the family and sending the two boys separate ways. Amir forever carried guilt and remorse for his actions but never confessed them even as he moved to America. However, he soon receives a call forcing him back to Afghanistan to face his demons and confront his guilt. Much of Amir’s character arc is about redeeming himself and paying a penance for his wrongful actions. For some people, attempt at amends are not enough to fix his past misdeeds. Others forgive his and admire his willingness to change. Every reader will interpret Amir differently and his interpretation will define how the book is received. The Kite Runner is a beautifully story. The early pacing is unsurprisingly slow as it establishes the foundational characters, locations and customs. The pacing remains generally consistent for most of the book, however, it quickly builds in intensity, changing the book from a light read to a passionate one that is impossible to put down.
One of the book’s best traits is its evocative description of the customs and setting of Afghanistan. During Amir’s childhood, the city of Kabul was a vibrant place with excitement color and lively people. However, when Amir returns to Afghanistan, the place is no longer what he remembers. The stark difference between the beautiful city and the demolished cityscape reveal the emotional and physical toll the Middle Eastern conflict has on its inhabitants. The sadness, despair, and shock of finding your home in ruin are almost tangible.
Unfortunately, the book’s characters don’t live up to the excellence of the backdrop. While Amir is one of the most truthful depictions of a normal human, many of the other characters don’t have nearly the same complexity. Characters like Hassan embody one idea, leaving them one-dimensional and hard to empathize with. Other characters are more multifaceted, but don’t receive enough attention to full flesh out and explore their character. This is especially prominent with female characters. In this male focused book, a lot of the women are given smaller roles or are left out completely. While this problem is later rectified in the female focused A Thousand Splendid Suns, it leaves the book without a good representation of women in Afghanistan.
Although the book has many faults, it does provide a human perspective of the ongoing crisis in Afghanistan and how some of the citizens coped with their situation. Above all, The Kite Runner is a testament to how far humans willing to go to redeem themselves. I give this 371 page book 4 stars.