The Kite Runner

When at last, fate brings him to a point where he can right the wrongs, he lets himself go where he never thought he would, back to his home in war torn Afghanistan. There he becomes the kind of person he has always admired because he is forced into it and slowly his conscience unfolds and helps him see what is important to him in life. In the end he risks everything he has earned in American to do the right thing.

This novel is recommended to anyone who enjoys good well-researched fiction, and/or who wants to understand the history of Afghanistan in a personal way. I'll never watch the news in the same way again. It is also beautifully written, with feeling, but never, feeling forced or false.


Wonderful!   December 11, 2003
 2 out of 3 found this review helpful

Absolutely, without a doubt, one of the best books I have ever read.


Best Fiction I have read   November 21, 2003
 3 out of 4 found this review helpful

Hosseini has written a terrifically human book that touches the soul. The Kite Runner is evokative, picturesque, and gripping. I recommend this work to anyone seeking a moving tale set in one of the most war-torn regions in the world.


An elegant, eye openning story   October 10, 2003
 6 out of 6 found this review helpful

When I started reading the Kite runner, I could not put down the book;I was glued to the book until I finished it. What a strong story of love, loyalty and betrayal.
I am form middle east and to some degree familiar with the middle east and Afghanistan situation and in my opinion Doctor Hosseini could not have done a better job relating and demonstrating what has been going on in Afghanistan in the past 30 years.In his book Dr. hosseini very skillfully inserts the Afghanistan's political events including the atrosities of Taliban with the beautiful story of Amir and Hassan. He teaches us about the culture and people of Afghanistan, even common every day conversational farsi words such as baba. I highly recommend this book and hope Dr. Hosseini continues to write more.


A stellar first book   October 10, 2003
 6 out of 6 found this review helpful

In this spellbinding debut, Khaled Hosseini tells a story of Afghanistan's modern history through the tale of Amir, who grew up in Kabul. His best friend was Hassan, the son of the family servant and a member of a shunned ethnic minority. As the son of a prominent businessman, Amir lived a good life, and yet he was always competing for his father's attention and approval, sometimes competing against Hassan. One eventful night in 1975, Amir makes a pivotal decision, a decision that not only marks his path for years but also destroys their family unit. Eventually fleeing to America with his father, Amir thinks he's run far enough away from his past, until someone from his past resurfaces. "The Kite Runner" is about fathers and sons, about the power of redemption, about the shining hope of literature. This is a book whose lush scope is wider than the confines of its pages.