The Kite Runner Overall Book Review

1. What was the author's purpose(s) in writing this book, and how can you tell? How well was this purpose achieved?
• Hint: If your book has an introduction, it's a good place to look for direct clues about the book's intended purpose and good quotes to include in your review.
3. What are the weaknesses of this book, in your opinion?
8. Pick a character that interested you and write about them in depth. You can also analyze a relationship between two different characters.
• Hint: If you just retell the events that happen to your character, that's not "in depth." You will need to zoom in on certain critical moments that truly show your character's nature, and explain how they do.

I think Khaled Hossei’s purpose of this book was to expose the life of an unfortunate Afghan family, and how they dealt with their constant problems. He wrote about Afghan children being bullied, raped, and even killed.  Innocent people were massacred throughout the story just because they were a disliked ethnicity, Hazara.

“They called him “flat-nosed” because Ali and Hassan’s characteristic Hazara Mongoloid features” (Page 9) and “His blue eyes flicked to Hassan. “Afghanistan is the land of Pashtuns. It always has been, always will be. We are the true Afghans, the pure Afghans, not this Flat-Nose here. His people pollute our homeland, our watan. They dirty our blood.”” (Page 40)

Hassan, one of the main characters in the story, is a Hazara, and was made fun of it. He was always put down just because he was a different ethnicity. Hassan had no one to be his friend. Not even his only friend, Amir, backed him up. Amir just watched Hassan get raped since he was too much of a coward. Assef, the person who raped Hassan, joined the Taliban, killing hundreds and hundreds of Hazara people.This book really opened my eyes to the world of a Afghan. They would be judged by what they are instead of their actions, and would be scared to express what they felt. I can tell by how he writes about Baba, Amir, and Hassan’s problems in life.

I think that Khaled Hossei did a wonderful job int he story. It has plenty of suspense, setting, history, and emotions. It has nice ending, not too happy, since nothing stays good forever in real life, and not too sad, which would lead to a unfinished book. The reader would want to know more about what happens, so a sad cliff hanger would be a terrible ending. The Kite Runner, however, end with high hopes for a better future towards a child that was saved from the evil forces of the Taliban’s power. I think that the weakness in the book was probably the length of the setting. It took a few chapters for me to get into the book since the characters were described and discussed in detail and through specific events. For example, Assef was drawn as the antagonist in this book by the way he were portrayed as the big bad boy of the neighborhood.

“Of all the neighborhood boys who tortured Ali, Assef was by far the most relentless. He was, in fact, the originator of the Babalu jeer, Hey Babalu, who did you eat today?” (Page 38)

There were many events in the book where Assef totally abuses  Amir and Hassan like how he ambushed them when Amir and Hassan were walking to read at a tree, and the time Assef sexually raped Hassan. Personally, I dislike a lot of setting and characterization since it isn’t very catchy, but I can see how it can be good. It did allow the middle and the end to flow better, making more sense, but I didn’t really enjoy the introduction of the book.

I didn’t really get interested that much when Amir narrated about how the Talibans destroyed and terrorized the streets in Afghanistan, but I guess it might of added to the visualization of how much of a fascist Assef was. Reading descriptions really bore me out since I don’t really find suspense in the location, but more of the story. I would like a good story over a good description any day. This is why I liked the middle to end of the book. It talked a lot about actions and what physically happened.

I think that Baba’s love to Amir and Hassan was not unfair considering that they were both his sons, but in this situation I think the love shared was pretty even.

“It wasn't fair. Hassan hadn't done anything to earn Baba's affections; he'd just been born with that stupid harelip.” (Page 46)

This quote evidenced how Baba's gifts to Hassan angered Amir. His jealousy of Baba's kindaness towards Hassan felt unfair, and undeserving to him. Amir thought that Baba should love and care more about his own son, and not some servant they had. I don’t really blame him for this action since he didn’t know Hassan was Baba’s son, but I think that he should have showed a little more consideration that Hassan was not just a servant. Actually, I think that Baba’s choice of laying low on Hassan being his son was a good idea. If people knew, Amir wouldn’t of grown up any better. He would have been made fun of more, and he wouldn’t have had Baba’s greatness to guide him.

I don’t even think that Hassan would gain from having everyone know he had Baba as his father. He would have been raised by a family that is nearly ashamed to be related to him. I know that Amir would totally avoid Hassan more than he already did acknowledging how much of a coward he is, and Hassan would not only be abused and confronted all the time by Assef, more children and even adults would try to shoo him away.

“Did your father,” he began, eyeing his food, “did your father love you and my father equally?” I thought of a long ago day at the Ghargha Lake, when Baba had allowed himself to pat Hassan on the back when Hassan’s stone had outskipped mine. I pictured Baba in the hospital room, beaming as they removed the bandages from Hassan’s lips. “I think he loved us equally but  differently." (Page 322)

I agree with the road Baba chose for Hassan and Amir, but still, he should have at least tried to keep the secret with Hassan and Amir, not allowing them to spread it out. I understand how hard it might be to break such news to two young children, but I think it should of been necessary. This might of relieved some of the jealousy Amir had when he was growing up since he would know the reason why Baba acted in such a way. I agree with how Amir said he and Hassan were loved differently. Amir had all of Baba's riches while Hassan had Baba's pride. Baba would buy Amir expensive thing, but Hassan was the one Baba had faith in.