Kite Runner

I rarely re-read any books, I've only re-read maybe three or four in my entire life; Khaled Hosseini's first novel, The Kite Runner, is one of those books. Set in the country of Afghanistan, The Kite Runner tells the tale of the heartache of a nation at war and the guilt of a man who must live with the terrible sins of his past. The story weaves in and out of the present time in 2001, effortlessly gliding back and forth from past to present, showing off the true creative genius of the author. The story centers on Amir, a young man who grew up in Kabul Afghanistan before the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1979. Amir lives a privileged life; the son of a wealthy, respected, and well liked man named Baba, he struggles throughout his young life to find the favor of his distant father. His best friend is Hassan, the son of Baba's servant and lifelong friend Ali. Hassan is a Hazara, a member of an ethnic minority which has been long been persecuted by the Pashtun majority, of which Amir and Baba are a part, but despite the historical rivalry between these two groups Amir and Hassan grow up as friends, going to see westerns like The Good, the Bad and the Ugly and The Magnificent Seven (Special Edition), reading stories in the branches of a fruit tree in the front lawn, and flying kites in the cold winter months.

Amir's first words as a child were 'Baba,' while Hassan's were 'Amir,' and from the very beginning of this tragic story those two words set the stage for every action these two characters make. Everything Amir does is to win the favor and affection of his father, while Hassan's goal is to do the same with Amir. This ultimately leads to Amir betraying Hassan in the worst way imaginable. For the rest of his life Amir wanders though life wondering 'what if?' and trying hopelessly to live down the endless streams of guilt and regret which plague him from the moment the act is committed onwards.