Thank god….Thank god that I read FILMFARE, for it was I think august edition of the filmfare where, in John Abraham’s interview I read a few facts about him.And it was written that he cried like a baby when he read khaled hosseini’s THE KITE RUNNER.
I was intrigued and I knew straight away that I had to give reading this book a shot. So I laid my hands on this book eagerly, though with some inhibitions, that emotions are personal….probably it was something he related to and became emotional and that’s why cried. And also because I came to know that the story was about Afghanistan, so I presumed it to be about war and to be preachy.
After all the excitement I didn’t want my reading the book to end up being an exercise in futility where I leave it mid-way…..
Anyways , with all the mixed emotions I started reading the book…
THE KITE RUNNER, A heart wrenching story about 2 boyz a- Aamir the pathan born with a silver spoon and hassan- the servant……about their childhood , growing up, the old Afghanistan, the kite flying competition, loyalties, JEALOUSY, the BETRAYAL, parting wayz, Taliban war……..life away from home, love, marriage, loneliness, past sins, the return home and ultimately-THE REDEMPTION……
One thing I would want to tell is that I am not much of a book reader…..the no of novels I have read till now, I can count on my fingers…..
This was a novel that forced me to write a book review for the first time in my life……..bcoz It just blew me away…..From the beginning to the end it’s a gem of a novel. Its not only about Afghanistan or afghanistanis, its about human emotions, that everyone who is a human being can relate to, infact you become a part of the novel urself, it seems that its u who’s spent a childhood in Afghanistan and you wish that old times return , for the protagonists. You can see your childhood, your mischiefs in them; your happiness , your traumas , your sadness , your sins in theirs… It is a book that touches you at all the right places. The nostalgia surrounds you………
Amongst all the good books written, there are some books that are good till u r reading them and then forget about them….then there are some books that stay with you long after you’ve finished reading them…….And ultimately there are a precious few that stay with you forever not only because the impressions they leave on your heart are indelible but also bcoz of the feeling you get even while you are reading them……
This is what separates a great book from the good ones…..and this is what hosseini-the author succeeds in doing. He takes the book to the heights of greats.Such is the spell that he casts that you never want a page to end, & at the same time eagerly wait for the next pages to unfold……
Although this is Hosseini’s first book as an author but it never shows. There are no signs of amateurity, infact it seems to have been written by a veteran, a stalwart of sorts….
He incorporates emotional along with amazing shock values in the novel by the means of various twists and turns that hit you. I am already looking forward towards his next works….
As far as characters are concerned there is not one that doesn’t leave an impact, be it aamir , hassan, baba, rahim khan or anybody else…..You find traces of people you know in them. They are so real.
Aamir is the one you can relate to and you can easily see a part of you in him, he is so humane. And although he is the central protagonist but the character of Hassan is the one that is sure to melt a million hearts with his unquestionable loyalty right till his end.He is sure to make a place in your heart and stay with you….
Believe me when I say I could have easily cried if I would have read the novel continuously without breaks (and I don’t cry easily) such is the impact….
It’s a story anybody would love to narrate to their grandchildren.
In the end I can just say-“Mr.Hosseini, take a bow”