One Minute Book Review: The Kite Runner

I recently finished The Kite Runner, the first book written by Khaled Hosseini. I knew a lot of people who had read this book and had strong opinions on it, so I decided to give it a go. I was pleasantly surprised and pleased with The Kite Runner, though I wasn't entirely satisfied with the ending.

The Kite Runner reads from the first-person perspective of Amir, the son of a wealthy businessman, who lives with his father, Baba, in a large house in Afghanistan. Amir and his father reside with their servant, Ali, and Ali's own son, Hassan. The first part of the novel centers around the interconnected relationships of both sets of sons and fathers, as well as Amir's close, almost brotherly, relationship with Hassan.

The author, Hosseini, does a great job of detailing the various lives of these four characters, set against the backdrop of Afghanistan in the 1970's and 80's. At the time, Afghanistan was a thriving, cultural mecca, though trouble lay ahead with Russian forces moving into the area, eventually exerting their will on the Afghani people.

Without giving away too much detail, Amir and Hassan experience a life changing event from different angles, which ultimately separates the pair, sending them both in completely different directions. This change in direction leads to Amir and his father migrating to America, where they start new, humble lives in the Bay Area. Hassan, as we later learn, remains in Afghanistan where his life becomes... well, depressing.

Much of the second half of the book deals with Amir making amends and redeeming himself for his handling of the event which, as briefly described above, sends both himself and Hassan along different routes. The lengths Amir goes to redeem himself are both dangerous and sometimes unbelievable -- even for a novel -- but it certainly is attention-grabbing... It's nearly impossible to put the book down over the last 100 pages.

This book is about 400 pages, but you'll tear through it in no time. The chapters are fairly short, and the novel moves along quickly and neatly, but beware, this is by no means a "feel good" story. There are a lot of sad, depressing moments in The Kite Runner, and even the conclusion makes you wonder why the author ended it this way.

I never really was all that interested in Afghanistan and its culture, but Hosseini really paints a vivid, interesting story of the rise and fall of the region. Midway through the book, I found myself repeating and memorizing a bunch of Afghani terms that are mentioned throughout the story. I was so enthralled with Hosseini's descriptive passages, I may even venture out to an Afghani restaurant here in San Francisco (should all Italian, sushi and burger joints suddenly close down for no reason).

Do I recommend The Kite Runner...? Absolutely. It's a good, quick read, and if you're in the mood for something a bit cultural and thought-provoking, pick it up.

On a scale of one to five (five being "amazing," and one being "awful"), I give The Kite Runner four "Mitch's".

My next book: The Tender Bar, by J.R. Moehringer