The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini: Book Summary
If you are still hesitating about reading The Kite Runner, go for it! It is one of the most brilliant novels I have read that indulged me in the internal and external worlds of the protagonist Amir.
The novel is a very Beautifully written masterpiece in a remarkably elucidating manner with touching emotional descriptions.
Today, we will cover the background of the author and the book summary, leaving other deeper angles of this captivating novel to the next blog.
Let’s get right into it!
- About Khaled Hosseini (The Author)
Born 1965 in Kabul, Afghanistan, Khaled Hosseini is an Afghan-American novelist, doctor, humanitarian and the author of the New York Best Sellers ‘The Kite Runner’ along with other notable works: A Thousand Splendid Suns And the Mountains Echoed.
Hosseini is also the UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador and the founder of The Khaled Hosseini Foundation.
- Book Summary
The plot of The Kite Runner happens in Afghanistan and the USA between the 1960s and early 2000s. It starts with a detailed description of the close childhood relationship between Amir -the narrator- and Hassan, how they share joyful moments playing, flying kites, and sharing wild imaginative worlds. However, Hassan is not only a playmate to Amir, he also is his servant, a Hazara. He lives along with his father Ali (a servant too) in the big house of Baba as referred to in the novel and his son Amir.
Baba is an honorable man with a great reputation in Kabul, Afghanistan, which makes Amir admire, respect, and love him. However, love isn’t the only emotion Amir has towards his father, it is more complex than that, he also hates him for feeling that his Baba prefers Hassan more. Now, Amir kind of hates Hassan too, who is very loyal to him and uniquely loves him considering him his best friend ever.
This is how the life of Amir changes forever, rotating with it the direction of everyone’s lives, including Rahim Khan, Baba’s best friend, and Amir, the only adult who’s close to little Amir and supports his writing skills.
The bad boys of the story are Wali, Kamal, and Assef. One day, they threatened Amir and Hassan but Hassan scared them with his slingshot, saving the day.
In the winter, a big tournament of kite running was taking place, a perfect opportunity for Amir to prove his worthiness to his father, but at what price….
Amir eventually wins the tournament, then Hassan goes to collect the losing kite for him saying his famous moving sentence: “For You A Thousand Times”, and doesn't come back.
When Amir went after him, he saw Hassan trapped by Wali, Kamal and Assef. Amir shows a big cowardness by hiding and watching Hassan, his loyal friend, being raped by Assef, then Amir runs back home taking with him the shame that will hunt his life.
After that horrible day, none of them talked about what happened and the guilt within Amir grew even bigger, which made him sink in his sins even more… He hides some money and a watch he owned under Hassan’s mattress accusing him of theft by telling Baba. Hassan surprisingly doesn’t deny it, and even if Baba forgives Hassan, he and his father Ali leave the house, the home in which Hassan grew up
Baba and Amir left Kabul in 1981 after being invaded by the Soviets to Pakistan and then to California. Their lives turn upside down, from luxury and opulence to Baba working in a gas station to provide while Amir finishes high school and pursues his writing studies at college. Nonetheless, the son-father relationship softened and improved dramatically.
Selling things in the flea market was another job Amir and Baba did, and it was at that market where Amir got love butterflies when he saw Soraya, the daughter of General Tahirir, Baba’s friend.
The happiness of finding the love of his life didn’t last long after Baba was diagnosed with lung cancer, and, as expected from Baba, he showed remarkable courage and accepted his son’s request to ask for Soraya’s hand from General Sahib, who accepted. Baba was very proud and pleased with Amir’s marriage, but he died months later.
Amir starts his writing career by publishing his first book, while Soraya works as a teacher. Their lives are full of mutual respect and love, simultaneously, the Soviets are getting out of Afghanistan. While Amir is satisfied with the warm household he formed even though his spouse and he can’t give birth, Rahim Khan calls Amir asking him to come to Pakistan. Amir accepts to go out of respect for Rahim Khan.
Once there, Rahim Khan first describes to Amir the horrible things The Taliban regime is doing in Kabul. Then he tells him details of what has happened all these years since he and Baba left Kabul for America, how he’s been watching over the house of Baba, living there, and asked Hassan to come with him with his wife Farzana to keep maintaining the house as he got old. Hassan and Farzana had a child named Sohrab.
Later on, Rahim Khan went to Pakistan leaving Hassan’s family in Baba’s house for health reasons. It was then when he learned that Hassan and Farzara were horribly executed by the Taliban, leaving little Sohrab alone, he was sent to an orphanage...
Rahim Khan asks Amir for a mission “to be good again”: to go back to Kabul and find Sohrab. Wondering why he would risk his life and the household he’s been caring for all these years, Rahim Khan reveals a shocking secret to Amir: Hassan was his half-brother, Baba’s son, which makes Sohrab his nephew…
Lost in anger and frustration for some moments, Amir finally agrees to go and find his nephew in the orphanage. Soon, he figures out that a Taliban Officer took him away for sexual purposes. Amir didn’t give up, that was his way to “be good again” and clean his past, as he went looking for the officer, he and his companion watched that officer execute a man and woman in public.
Afraid but adhering to his courage, Amir meets the officer who calls Sohrab to the room, the little boy has been sexually abused and humiliated. The more frightening thing was when the officer revealed himself as being Assef!
They agreed on a fight that will determine the winner (who’s going to take Sohrab), a big fight happens between Amir and Assef ending with Sohrab saving the day -just like his father- by shooting Assef with his slingshot right to the eye.
Amir decides to take Sohrab with him to the USA, the little boy hesitates at first but accepts at the end after the uncle-nephew bond of trust has been built.
Amir intended to adopt Sohrab, unfortunately, he soon finds out that it is almost impossible (the author in this part puts the light on how poorly managed the legislation is regarding adoption). Amir tells Sohrab the truth and that he might give him back to the orphanage temporarily by the time he finishes all legal work to move him to America.
Hopefully, Rahim Khan will find a way through his connections to get Sohrab an American Visa. Meanwhile, Sohrab, not bearing going back to an orphanage, tries to kill himself the same night he knew.
Sohrab survives at last but never talks, the traumas were very tense and trust got numb in him. So, eventually, Sohrab lives with Amir and Soraya in California but remains silent.
One day at an event where Afghans were gathering, kites were flying, and Amir bought one, just like in the old days with Hassan, he ran the Kite along with Sohrab, they fought another kite and ran it.
Sohrab finally smiled, very lightly, but he smiled… Amir then goes to recover the Kite for Sohrab saying: “For You A Thousand Times Over!”
To say the least, this is a very moving plot full of hidden meanings and lessons. In the next blog, I will be sharing all themes of the novel with lessons we can implement in our lives and a surprise bonus in my next blog.
