The Kite Runner

By Khaled Hosseini

Average Rating: (See all 19 reviews) Format: Paperback, 400 pages Published In: United States, January 2003 Quantity Available: 2 24 hour shipping (Order in the next 9 hours, we'll ship it today) Add to Cart Please wait, the system is processing. "I sat on a bench near a willow tree and watched a pair of kites soaring in the sky. I thought about something Rahim Khan said just before he hung up, almost as an afterthought, 'There is a way to be good again.'" Now in paperback, one of the year's international literary sensations -- a shattering story of betrayal and redemption set in war-torn Afghanistan. Amir and Hassan are childhood friends in the alleys and orchards of Kabul in the sunny days before the invasion of the Soviet army and Afghanistan's decent into fanaticism. Both motherless, they grow up as close as brothers, but their fates, they know, are to be different. Amir's father is a wealthy merchant; Hassan's father is his manservant. Amir belongs to the ruling caste of Pashtuns, Hassan to the despised Hazaras. This fragile idyll is broken by the mounting ethnic, religious, and political tensions that begin to tear Afghanistan apart. An unspeakable assault on Hassan by a gang of local boys tears the friends apart; Amir has witnessed his friend's torment, but is too afraid to intercede. Plunged into self-loathing, Amir conspires to have Hassan and his father turned out of the household. When the Soviets invade Afghanistan, Amir and his father flee to San Francisco, leaving Hassan and his father to a pitiless fate. Only years later will Amir have an opportunity to redeem himself by returning to Afghanistan to begin to repay the debt long owed to the man who should have been his brother. Compelling, heartrending, and etched with details of a history never before told in fiction, The Kite Runner is a story of the ways in which we're damned by our moral failures, and of the extravagant cost of redemption. Publisher: Riverhead Books ISBN: 1594480001 EAN: 9781594480003 Dimensions: 20.8 x 12.85 x 2.57 centimeters (0.32 kg)

Heartbreaking novel that explores a culture that's foreign to many of us while still exploring a tragic and heartbreaking family history where secrets did so much damage to so many people.

I found this a very touching and interesting book
An excellent inside into the rich and the poor in Afghanistan

A fantastic book

Vivid details, kinda fast paced, sad story but unpredictable

Great way or writing and shows the reader another time, transports them to another world

Definately should read it

‘The Kite Runner’ is certainly an eye-opening novel into another culture. Hosseini depicts Afghanistan is such a compelling light- makes this novel hard to put down. This is a fascinating story that at times is deplorable and shocking, yet at other times shows the true meaning of friendship and love.

This is the first non-horror and non-fantasy novel I have read in a long time, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I love this book. this book is amazing, after the first page I was addicted and by the end of the first chapter I couldnt put it down! I read the book in 1 weekend and was so sad when I had finished.

Amazing book - you are completely drawn into a world that for most of us is so foreign - but the way Khaled writes makes it so easy for you to understand even with the difference in ethnicities. I laughed and cried and thoroughly enjoyed it! Highly recommended. Book is a million times better than the movie although the movie is still Good!

I started this book yesterday and found it very hard to put down, had to leave at home to come to work

This book is amazing. Loved everything about it. My favourite thing about this book is how the writer describes the characters emotions and surrounding. The mix so well together at that very moment. Had a real pleasure reading this book even if there were ups and downs moments.

Great book - really enjoyed his writing style.
Have already passed it on for my brother to read.

Absolutely fabulous book. I think I will have to read his other novels now.