📚 The Kite Runner 🪁🏃♂️
A story about two friends, Amir and Hassan, and their adventures and challenges. This book takes us to different places and times, showing us the power of friendship, the pain of mistakes, and the importance of saying sorry and making things right.
About the book
| Author: | Khaled Hosseini |
| Year of release: | 2003 |
| Genre: | Fiction, Historical, Novel, Adult, Literature, Drama |
| Pages: | 371 |
| Average WPM: | 358 |
| Date Started/Finished: | 7 to 12 July-2022 |
| Time took: | 4.88 Hours |
Impressions What I Liked About It
- Its a unique story and the theme is completely original
- You cant see the plot twist coming
How I Discovered It
Mahin (aka Maya) recommended it to me
Who Should Read It?
- If someone is interested in Afghan and war related stories
- Someone who loves a redemption story
Actionable Takeaways
- Always stand for what is right, regardless of what the consequences are.
- The Importance of Facing Your Past - Don’t shy away from your history, no matter how painful. Acknowledging and learning from past mistakes is crucial for personal growth and healing.
- Understanding Cultural Divides - Make an effort to learn about and understand cultures different from your own. Approach people with empathy and compassion, recognizing the common humanity that binds us all.
- The Impact of Socio-Economic Inequalities - Engage with your community to address inequalities, this could involve volunteering, advocating for policy changes, or simply being more aware of the privileges you may have.
Top Quotes
For you a thousand times over - Hassan
“A boy who won’t stand up for himself becomes a man who can’t stand up to anything.”
For kite runners, the most coveted prize was the last fallen kite of a winter tournament.
“It hurts to say that,” he said (Baba), shrugging. “But better to get hurt by the truth than comforted with a lie.”
For me, America was a place to bury my memories. For Baba, a place to mourn his.
“Zendagi migzara” he said. Life goes on.
There are a lot of children in Afghanistan, but little childhood.
Summary + Notes
CHAPTER ONE
For you a thousand times over - Hassan
This line captures the essence of unconditional loyalty and sacrifice. Spoken by Hassan to Amir, it occurs during a pivotal scene where Hassan commits to running and fetching a kite for Amir, signifying his unwavering dedication and friendship.
For Amir, this line becomes a haunting reminder of his own failings and the loyalty he could not reciprocate later on in the story.
This is not only a simple line about friendship but also is a pledge of loyalty. It captures Hassan’s character and sets the tone for the moral and emotional landscape of The Kite Runner.
CHAPTER THREE
“When you kill a man, you steal a life,” Baba said. “You steal his wife’s right to a husband, rob his children of a father. When you tell a lie, you steal someone’s right to the truth. When you cheat, you steal the right to fairness. Do you see?”
This quote highlights the extensive impact of one’s actions on others. Baba is teaching Amir about the concept of theft being the only true sin, which covers more than just ‘physical’ theft. It’s also an ethical lesson that illustrates how actions such as lying, cheating, and killing are forms of theft because they deprive others of their rights, dignity, and truth.
This idea sets a moral foundation for the novel, emphasizing the interconnectedness of human actions and the broad repercussions of seemingly personal choices.
“And where is he headed?” Baba said. “A boy who won’t stand up for himself becomes a man who can’t stand up to anything.”
Baba’s observation here addresses personal courage and integrity. He worries that a lack of self-defense in his young boy not only reflects a present weakness but also predicts a future of inability to confront or challenge injustices. This comment foreshadows Amir’s struggles with guilt stemming from his actions (and inactions) in his youth. It puts across a message about the importance of developing courage and integrity early in life to prepare for moral challenges in adulthood.
Baba’s wisdom serves as a guiding light for Amir’s journey later on in the story.
CHAPTER FOUR
Never mind any of those things. Because history isn’t easy to overcome. Neither is religion. In the end, I was a Pashtun and he was a Hazara, I was Sunni and he was Shi’a, and nothing was ever going to change that. Nothing.
This talks about the deeply ingrained social and religious divides between the story’s main characters, Amir (a Pashtun & Sunni) and Hassan (a Hazara & Shi’a). Despite their close friendship, Amir acknowledges the barriers of ethnic and religious identities that Afghan society imposes on them.
It appeared that on the same night I had learned about one of writing’s objectives, irony, I would also be introduced to one of its pitfalls: the Plot Hole. Taught by Hassan, of all people. Hassan who couldn’t read and had never written a single word in his entire life. A voice, cold and dark, suddenly whispered in my ear, What does he know, that illiterate Hazara? He’ll never be anything but a cook. How dare he criticize you?
Amir’s complex feelings of superiority, insecurity, and guilt towards Hassan is shown here. Despite Hassan’s illiteracy, he points out a plot hole in a story Amir has written.
Amir’s immediate reaction is a defensive one, probably influenced by societal prejudices that deem Hazaras as inferior. This internal monologue highlights Amir’s struggle with his own moral compass and societal conditioning. It also reflects the book’s exploration of literacy and knowledge as forms of “power” - Amir is confronted by the irony that Hassan, despite his inability to read or write, can still offer valuable insights into storytelling.
CHAPTER SIX
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The real fun began when a kite was cut. That was where the kite runners came in, those kids who chased the windblown kite drifting through the neighborhoods until it came spiraling down in a field, dropping in someone’s yard, on a tree, or a rooftop.
-
And when a kite runner had his hands on a kite, no one could take it from him. That wasn’t a rule. That was custom.
-
For kite runners, the most coveted prize was the last fallen kite of a winter tournament.
-
But I remembered something my teacher had said that summer about Iranians, that they were grinning smooth talkers who patted you on the back with one hand and picked your pocket with the other. I told Baba about that and he said my teacher was one of those jealous Afghans, jealous because Iran was a rising power in Asia and most people around the world couldn’t even find Afghanistan on a world map. “It hurts to say that,” he said, shrugging. “But better to get hurt by the truth than comforted with a lie.”
CHAPTER TEN
- That first night, all the men prayed together. One of the refugees asked Baba why he wasn’t joining them. “God is going to save us all. Why don’t you pray to him?” Baba snorted a pinch of his snuff. Stretched his legs. “What’ll save us is eight cylinders and a good carburetor.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
“There are only three real men in this world, Amir,” he’d say. He’d count them off on his fingers: America the brash savior, Britain, and Israel. “The rest of them—” he used to wave his hand and make a phht sound “—they’re like gossiping old women.”
In Baba’s view, Israel was an island of “real men” in a sea of Arabs too busy getting fat off their oil to care for their own. “Israel does this, Israel does that,” Baba would say in a mock-Arabic accent. “Then do something about it! Take action. You’re Arabs, help the Palestinians, then!”
Baba’s criticism of Arab nations for their inaction, especially regarding the Palestinian issue, reflects his frustration with what he perceives as acceptance and complacency. By saying they are “too busy getting fat off their oil to care for their own,” he is critiquing these nations for not utilizing their wealth and resources to make meaningful changes or support their neighbors.
His views mirror attitudes in the era in which the story is set, mainly regarding the admiration for Western countries. His opinions on Israel and Arab nations also touch on sensitive geopolitical issues that are still relevant today, including the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the role of Arab countries in it.
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I tried to get Baba to enroll in ESL classes to improve his broken English. But he scoffed at the idea. “Maybe I’ll spell ‘cat’ and the teacher will give me a glittery little star so I can run home and show it off to you,” he’d grumble.
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Baba was like the widower who remarries but can’t let go of his dead wife. He missed the sugarcane fields of Jalalabad and the gardens of Paghman.
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For me, America was a place to bury my memories. For Baba, a place to mourn his.
-
We got out and sat inside the Ford. It was a Grand Torino. Navy blue, Baba said.
“Zendagi migzara,” he said. Life goes on.
This line captures a profound and a truth about the human condition in the face of adversity. It suggests that despite the trials, losses, and changes individuals face, life does not halt.
It also reflects an acceptance of change as a part of life, it implies that while circumstances change the flow of life continues regardless.
And on a deeper level, “Zendagi migzara” embodies a sense of hope and the importance of looking forward. It suggests that despite past mistakes, regrets, or losses, there is always a path forward.
CHAPTER TWELVE
- I remembered something Baba had said about Pashtuns once. We may be hardheaded and I know we’re far too proud, but, in the hour of need, believe me that there’s no one you’d rather have at your side than a Pashtun.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
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A CREATIVE WRITING TEACHER at San Jose State used to say about clichés: “Avoid them like the plague.” Then he’d laugh at his own joke.
-
We’re a melancholic people, we Afghans, aren’t we? Often, we wallow too much in ghamkhori and self-pity. We give in to loss, to suffering, accept it as a fact of life, even see it as necessary. Zendagi migzara, we say, life goes on.
- Ghamkhori - Self-indulgent attitude about one’s own difficulties
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
“What I’m asking from you is to grant an old man his dying wish,” he said gravely. He had gambled with that comment. Played his best card. Or so I thought then. His words hung in limbo between us, but at least he’d known what to say. I was still searching for the right words, and I was the writer in the room.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Here is another cliché my creative writing teacher would have scoffed at; like father, like son. But it was true, wasn’t it? As it turned out, 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. And with that came this realization: that Rahim Khan had summoned me here to atone not just for my sins but for Baba’s too.
CHAPTER TWENTY
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‘How seamless seemed love and then came trouble!’” A smile sprouted on my face. “I know that ghazal. That’s Hafez.”
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Baba used to say, “Take two Afghans who’ve never met, put them in a room for ten minutes, and they’ll figure out how they’re related.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
I thought of a line I’d read somewhere, or maybe I’d heard someone say it: There are a lot of children in Afghanistan, but little childhood.
Afghanistan’s history is marked by successive wars, invasions, and internal conflicts that have affected its people’s lives. The line talks about how these conditions have particularly stolen childhood from the nation’s children, making survival, rather than play or education, their main concern.
It highlights the universal tragedy of war-torn regions, where the joys and discoveries of youth are usually overshadowed by violence, loss, and displacement.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
- I looked at the photo. Your father was a man torn between two halves, Rahim Khan had said in his letter. I had been the entitled half, the society-approved, legitimate half, the unwitting embodiment of Baba’s guilt.